Her Last Mystery
by Celina Corey
Summary: It has been six years since the battle against Voldemort and then, after an unexpected heartbreak, Hermione meets a strikingly handsome man in Venice. The next time they meet, he kidnaps her! Through a dangerous mission will they fall in love?
1. Poveglia

**Author's Note:** Though I haven't quite finished writing this, I just couldn't wait to get it published. I hope you enjoy it!

Oh! And this prologue will make sense later! It's not random, I promise!

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**Prologue:**  
"_Poveglia_"

Some five miles of the coast of Venice, Italy lies an island of foreboding. Its dark history bids visitors to stay away. To the locals it is known as the Island of the Dead, or the Land of No Return. However, for most it is simply called: Poveglia. During the daylight hours, Poveglia is a place of beauty and what would appear to be peace, but come night-fall the place holds an aura of evil.

The history of Poveglia dates back to the 1300s during the Bubonic Plague, more commonly known as the Black Death. With much of Venice's population either dead or dying, authorities needed a solution to isolate the sick. Their "solution" was to take the sick and force them into boats, hooded, and cart them away to an unknown place. This unknown place was Poveglia.

Once on Poveglia, the sick would be buried in Plague Pits, even though some were still alive. Then the pits would be burned. The piles of the dead were so massive that it has been said that they reached all the way Hell. To this day, the ashes remain and bones are still scoured up by fishermen in the nearby waters.

But the haunting history of Poveglia does not stop with the Black Death. Hundreds of years later, in 1922, a hospital was opened on its grounds. It was not long until patients began to see spirits from the tragedy six hundred years prior. The Head Surgeon believed them to be mental and took upon himself the opportunity to study and experiment with the human brain. It is said that if you went into his office, you never came back out. Some time later, the surgeon was pushed by unseen hands from the bell tower atop the hospital; from which, though the bell was removed in the 1930s and the tower since bricked up, you can still hear the bell ringing from time to time.

With an active history such as this, only the brave at heart would dare visit this island…


	2. Venice

**Chapter One:  
**"_Venice_"

She sat with her parents and cherished the thought of her birthday soon to come. It was a blessing that she was allowed another birthday, another year of life. Six years ago, she almost lost that blessing as she and her friends, Harry and Ron, embarked on a journey that very nearly cost them both their friendships and their lives. Thankfully, however, chance allowed the three the blessing of future birthdays and though her friends did not seem to fully appreciate this gift, Hermione Granger would never take another birthday for granted.

This particular year she would be twenty-one and she chose to celebrate her blessing early with her parents in what appeared to be the one place they'd never visited: Venice, Italy. Sure they'd visited Roma, Verona, Mantua and even Bologna, yet they'd never visited Venice. It was for this reason, that when Hermione's birthday came around she seized the chance to go. After all, you only live once and you might as well live it right.

Hermione sat, with her back to the wall, facing her parents and the rest of the restaurant in which they were waiting for the check. It was beginning to fill with various types of people who wished to eat their evening meal. She saw couples on their honeymoon, couples who'd been married for decades and couples who seemed to be on their first date. She saw families on vacation, various groups and the occasional loner. But out of all the various groups and people, one man caught her undivided attention.

He had short, dark-brown hair and a well-chiseled face. She could not be sure, because of distance, of the colour of his eyes, but she was convinced that they would be green in colour. He wore a black button-up shirt and was clean shaven. Hermione's overall opinion of him was stunning. Looking beside him, she saw what could only be his brother. Though he had short, blonde hair, it was easy to see that the two shared similar features. While one had a sharp square chin, the other had a very similar shaped chin but simply more rounded. They both owned the same nose and eye shape, though with differently shaped eyebrows. Despite the intense similarities, Hermione found herself drawn more so to the darker-haired of the two, for some inexplicable reason.

Drawing her away from her distraction, the man of her interest called a waitress over to him, handed her a napkin and explained something that appeared to be important. Hermione watched the waitress go into the kitchen and then return with a glass of wine, but instead of heading back towards the man, she seemed to be headed towards Hermione. Hermione's breath quickened when she realized he was attempting to pass her a note, and she felt like a school girl experiencing her first crush. Then embarrassment struck her; had he caught her staring and was politely asking her to stop? Playing with her charm bracelet, she hoped that a flush did not grace her cheeks. Finally, the waitress reached her and handed the napkin and wine to her, explaining that it was already paid for. Before her parents could see the note, she snatched up the napkin and read:

_Piazza di San Marco  
__10:30 pm  
__-C.H._

She could not help but smile. He wanted to meet her and talk to her. But before her mind could think anymore, she watched him and his brother get up and leave the restaurant; she watched him approach the door and before he walked out, he winked at her. She felt her stomach do a little flip and she struggled to compose herself. Moments later, Hermione and her parents left the restaurant and returned to the hotel, where they would stay for the night and then leave the next morning for London.

***

Later on that night, Hermione woke and quietly exited the hotel room, so as not to disturb her parents just on the other side of the walls. As she left the room, she realized that she could not be gone long. Her parents would have a panic attack if they woke in the morning and she was not there. She sighed, they treated her like she was still fifteen sometimes. Hoping she was not making a big mistake in meeting this man that she did not know, she left the comfort and solitude of the beautiful Hotel Concordia and took the few steps it took to get to St. Mark's Plaza.

In the night, the Plaza seemed empty, save a few. Hermione glanced around and did not immediately see _C.H._ She looked at her watch and saw that she was five minutes early. Suddenly, she felt foolish and idiotic. Here she was, waiting for a man whom could end up raping her, or worse kill her. What happened to never taking life for granted? She was risking her life only because of mere curiosity. _Curiosity killed the cat._

She knew she should leave but for some bizarre reason, she could not bring herself to do so. Finally, she willed herself to take the step to return to the hotel but just as she did so, she felt a hand grace her shoulder. She spun around, her hand on her wand, ready to curse whomever intended her harm and not caring that at least ten muggles would see. She'd rather face exposure than face her death. Her life was too special and just now settling into place, she would not loose it.

But as she met the face of her attacker she calmed. There stood _C.H._, calmly in front of her as if he were merely greeting an old friend. All thoughts of curses dissipated from her mind when she saw him smiling at her, and only the thought of learning more about this intriguing creature filled her mind.

"Hi. I'm Chris Halliwell. I saw you at the restaurant watching me and thought it be nice to properly meet you, since you appear to have an interest in me," he stretched his hand out to her, willing her to shake it.

Slowly, she reached her hand to his and shook it, "Hello. I'm Hermione Granger. It's nice to actually meet you."

He smiled and appeared to be pondering whether or not to say something, then decided against it and then, finally deciding to say it, ventured, "So tell me about yourself…"

Hermione nearly laughed at the cheesy-ness of the line, but decided it would be better not to. She was so wrapped up in her amusement that almost forgot to answer. And so she launched into explaining the basics about herself, while leaving out that she was a witch, of course. After she told him about her, he told her about him. She learned that he had an older brother named Wyatt and a little sister named Melinda. His mother once owned a club, that she gave to him and his brother, but now owned a very successful restaurant. She learned that he lived, though she didn't find out where, with his brother in an apartment near his family home but that he really was only ever there to sleep. The more she learned, the more intrigued she was by him. Then, the clock struck twelve and she felt like Cinderella leaving the ball and running out of time.

He nearly begged her not to go, but she knew she had to. The next morning, she would be leaving for London. As she said her good bye, he stared at her intensely and then brushed a small piece of hair out of her face. For a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her, even wanted him to, but he seemed to have decided not to and merely settled for saying good bye.

"Good bye, Hermione," and then before he walked off solemnly, "Until we meet again."

And then she too, walked off and returned to her hotel. But unbeknownst to Hermione, the simple charm bracelet she'd been wearing that night had slipped off her wrist as she walked away and was now in the possession of a Mr. Chris Halliwell.


	3. Enigmas

**Author's Note:** Well...I said I wasn't going to make another post tonight, but I just couldn't take the anticipation! Chapter Three, may take a bit of time, however. I am afraid to post it on here. It's good and I like it, but I'm afraid it may get a bit too graphic - no, it is not a smut scene! Sorry! I don't write those! I don't want to say too much about it right now, I don't want to ruin it.

Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Oh, and sorry! No yummy Chris in this chapter!

**

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Chapter Two:  
**"_Enigmas_"

She was tired, dreadfully tired. She had not slept well in days and now she was expected to work. But even as she cursed the amount of papers before her, she knew that it was only herself she could blame. _She'd_ been the one who stayed in the Plaza until midnight with Chris two nights ago. _She'd_ been the one who had perused through very nearly every book she owned until three the night before just to keep him off her mind. And it was _she_ who'd decided to be an Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries. Yes, it was her fault indeed.

But Hermione loved her job, which was a fact that she could not deny, even though right now she wanted nothing more than to be at home sleeping soundly in her bed. She worked studying the Death Chamber, which, to her great delight, required quite a bit of research. In fact, that was what her work was: research. She spent her days scrutinizing every little detail of random pieces of papers in hopes that she would one day find the answer to what lies within the Death Chamber: the Veil. The Veil, perhaps, is what drew her to the job in the first place. She felt she owed it to Sirius to at least understand the very thing that took his life. As she read the numerous records on her desk, a sheet of paper caught her attention. It held two very small passages written separately and, to her surprise and delight, in English:

_All time halts for those who seek  
__fortunes bitter enemy  
__Lies who haunt but do not speak  
__in grief of secret  
__forever hidden in secrecy_

***

_In the path of the sun  
__a never ending orbit  
__The circle stops for no man  
__yet seems stops when there is no  
__man left to live it_

She was completely confused, and yet she felt as if this could hold the key to what she'd been searching for. Her heart raced and her palms began to sweat. All this time could really have been this simple? She needed to calm herself, she needed to breathe and to rationalize. She'd only just found the passages and was making irrational assumptions. She still needed to understand to the fullest extent what they meant, especially before she launched a rescue mission…assuming such a thing was possible or plausible. Deciding it best she get a second opinion, she made her way to the Head Unspeakable. She was one of the few graced with the permission of doing so. Most came to the Head Unspeakable with meaningless runes that merely described a proposal for a cure of dragonpox when everyone knew that the proposal on the paper had been ruled out five hundred years ago! Hermione, however, came to her boss with very valuable records and knowledgeable explanations to go with them, thusly she was allowed pretty much anything at work.

She knocked on the office door and for a split second reconsidered, but as her boss opened the door she realized it was a little to late for that. Hermione very cautiously, as she always did and would always do, explained what she had found, what she thought of it and, showing her the paper, admitted she was otherwise utterly perplexed. The Head Unspeakable took the paper from her hands, furrowed her eyebrows and pursed out her lips. Hermione watched her eyes scan over and over the passages as if trying to take in every single detail, yet not fully understanding any of it. Finally, she looked up and handed the paper back to Hermione.

"You did good. I like what you found," she paused as if to evaluate what she was saying and what she wanted to say, "Study it some more, I want to know what it means. All your other work will be transferred to my apprentice, you are to work on that until you know what it means…understand?"

When Hermione replied that she did, her boss flung her arm at her dismissively, "Good…Now go!"

Hermione left and returned to her office, where, to her surprise, all of the papers that once were there…were gone. She left out a very enthused sigh and sat down, barely containing her excitement. Finally! She was being put on her own assignment, one that no one else was on! Finally, she'd get all the credit for what she discovered. It was like a dream come true. Not wanting to delay any longer, she began to read and read the passages until she actually knew them by heart, though her memory of them did not stop her from continuously reading them more. Suddenly, green flames erupted in the small fireplace in the corner of her office. Appearing through them, was a vase of flowers and a small note attached to the vase.

She, grunting, got up from her desk and walked over to the flowers and the note. Part of her hoped that the flowers were from Chris, but she knew that it was impossible. He was just a muggle with no special powers and would not have access to the floo network. She read the note and, to her frustration, discovered the flowers were from Ron:

_Hermione,  
__I know you must hate me, and I just want you to know that I am greatly sorry. I did not respect you or our relationship. I'd like another chance, if you'll have me. Hermione, I love you. I want nothing more than for you to be happy, and be with you if you'll accept me. But if you no longer want me and that is what makes you happy, then I will try to respect your decision._

_Begging your forgiveness,  
__Ron_

Hermione sighed so loud and angrily that she was worried people all across the world had heard. How could he ask her to forgive him after what he did? Did he think she had no self respect? Was he really that inconsiderate? Grabbing a quill and parchment, she wrote down a response for him:

_Ronald,  
__You know just as well as I that it is not easy to forgive someone who has hurt you, though I am trying. And Ronald, I am flattered that you still choose me but I regrettably have no interest in a committing relationship at the moment. I truly am sorry._

_Always,  
__Hermione_

She sent the letter and then dared a glance at the clock and, almost to her relief, saw that it time for her to go home. She nearly laughed at the irony of it. Hermione Jean Granger actually wanting to go home from work? Ha! Despite the hilarity of it all, she really wanted to go home and lay in her bed. And so she left work and went home to her quaint apartment in the heart of London, not quite that far from the Leaky Cauldron. She looked around and saw that everything was in its place. The kitchen was still clean, the small dining area still cluttered in paper and the living area still was stack high with books and was only visible because of the small sofa she hardly ever used, unless, of course, she was upset and wanted to stay up all night eating ice cream.

Taking advantage of being home, she placed her papers on the dining table and headed straight for the bed, wherein she succumbed to sleep immediately. Some time later, she woke with hunger and realized that she had not ate a thing since breakfast that day. She glanced at her clock and saw that it was only two in the afternoon. Deciding she could wait a while until the evening meal, she went to her dining area and began to study the papers once more:

_All time halts for those who seek  
__fortunes bitter enemy  
__Lies who Halliwell but do not speak  
__in grief of secret  
__forever hidden in secrecy_

_***_

_In the path of the sun  
__a never ending orbit  
__The circle stops for no man  
__yet seems stops when there is no  
__Chris Halliwe--_

_What the Bloody Hell?!_ she thought to herself as she looked at her written copies of the passages. Something to do with Chris Halliwell written no less than two times! And surrounded by little hearts! Of all the childish, immature and naïve things to do! This was not Hermione Granger, this was a teenager! And Hermione was a teenage no longer! She was an adult for Merlin's sake! A strong and individual woman, and, damn it, she was not going to let one amazing night with an amazing person of the male gender cause her to defy the customs she had set up for herself. _There's nothing more worse than that!_ Oh, but Hermione Granger thought wrong. There was, indeed, something far worse than that.

Mere seconds later, her best friend, Ginny Weasley, flooed in. Hermione was utterly horrified. Should she see the name and hearts, Hermione would never, ever, be allowed to hear the end of it. Scrambling the papers together and stacking them so that the embarrassment sat at the bottom, Hermione desperately attempted to hide the paper. But alas, she was too late.

"What are you trying to hide?"

Ginny's voice was cloaked in deep amusement. Hermione felt the colour rising up her cheeks and knew that there was no way possible for her to avoid the conversation to come, but that didn't mean she wouldn't try.

Taking a deep breath, she launched into as good as a lie as she was going to be able to muster, "Nothing. I'm just trying to clean up some."

Ginny laughed, "Then why are you turning bright red?"

"No reason…"

"Oh, come on, Hermione. We all know you're a terrible liar," she said as she took a step towards the table and with the skill of quickness from having six brothers, plucked the paper Hermione had tried to hide from the stack and read it. After a few moments, she laughed again and questioned with relish in her voice, "Who's _Chris Halliwell_?"

"Nobody."

"Oh, but of course…we all right random peoples' names on our work and put little hearts around them, though they are nobody to us."

Hermione buried her face in her hands and was silent for a few moments; Ginny, it seemed, grew impatient, "Well, who is he?"

"A guy…I met in Venice."

"You mean, you met a guy when you were in Venice with your parents?"

Hermione sighed, "Yes. We met on my last night at the restaurant and he ordered me wine with a note on a napkin--"

"What did the note say?!"

Ginny was now turning into her social butterfly self and wanted to know all the juicy details. Hermione sighed and tried with all her might to avoid the conversation, to learn why Ginny had come in the first place, but it seemed her best friend would not allow a change in conversation until she gathered whatever information she could.

"Well…?"

"He wanted to meet me in St. Mark's Plaza that night at 10:30."

"Did you go?"

"Yes…"

Ginny squealed and Hermione was being to wonder what was mentally wrong with her, "What happened? Did he kiss you? Was there more than kissing?"

After removing her hands from her ears, Hermione sighed for what felt like the millionth time since Ginny had arrived, "We talked. No he did not kiss me--and no I did not kiss him. Nothing happened…we just talked."

Ginny appeared a bit put down by the lack of interesting details that would suffice to her liking and chose to create her own amusement, "You _love_ him."

"What?! No, I don't!"

"Maybe not _yet_."

"I won't ever love him! We don't even talk anymore--"

"You mean you haven't talked _yet_," Ginny interrupted.

Hermione sighed a very exasperated sigh and asked, "What did you come here for anyway?"

Ginny merely shrugged and said, "We're having a big dinner at the Burrow tonight and I want you to come. Will you?"

"I'd rather not. I've got things I need to do."

"Oh, come on. Please?"

"Ginny, I've got work to do."

"Hermione, please! You _have_ to be there! It's _important_."

"Alright, fine. But I'm just staying for dinner. I can't stay long."

Ginny smiled and said, "I'll see you at five," and then flooed back to her home.

Glancing at the clock, Hermione saw that it was now four. Sighing in her defeat, she got up from her seat and went to her bedroom, where she changed into an unpretentious white shirt and black skirt. It reminded her of her Hogwarts uniform and maybe that's why she liked it so much, the simplicity of it all. Grabbing a book, she sat down in a chair and read to pass the time until she would have to leave. When she finally saw that it was time to leave, she got up, put the book away and flooed to the Burrow.

Molly greeted her at the gate, began dusting off her shoulders and said, "Hermione, dear, so glad you could come. They haven't told you have they?"

"They haven't told me what?"

Molly chuckled, "Oh, I don't even know. It's why we're all here, though."

"Mrs. Weasley, I really don't know what you are talking about."

"Ginny didn't tell you?"

Hermione saw Ginny look up at the sound of her name, "No, she just said that there was a big dinner here tonight."

Molly smiled, "Why, Harry and her have got us all together to tell us some really big new! No one knows for sure what it is, but we all have our guesses!"

Molly was absolutely beaming, and now Hermione understood why. It was almost obvious that Harry and Ginny were engaged. After all, they'd been dating since sixth year. Well, unless you considered when they broke up for her protection. Hermione smiled; it was about time they got married. And now all they needed was a confirmation…

Molly set the table singing to a very appropriate song: _Enchantress_ by Celestina Warbeck. As she looked on, Hermione found herself humming with her and eventually singing with her. When she began to help set the table, Ginny came in and began to sing as well. Hermione could feel all eyes on them from the living area, but no one appeared to care; they just continued singing.

"_There's no other good witch, no. No other good witch for you…I'm your Enchantress._"

And so ended the song and all three witches were left alone in the kitchen to do nothing but blush and attempt to hide their embarrassment. When finally dinner was served, everyone sat down at the table to eat and make conversation. Hermione saw that all of Harry and Ginny's close friends and family were there. After their food was eaten and they felt as if they could eat no more, Molly announced dessert. Hermione watched as Ginny looked to Harry, who nodded, and then stood while she cleared her throat, as if to speak. When all eyes had been bestowed upon her, she began.

"As you all know, Harry and I have gathered you all together for some big news," she paused, creating a near-tangible aura anticipation in the air, "and I suppose now would be a fairly decent time to tell you."

She was silent, smirking at Harry as if they had planned this drawn-out torture and it was then that Hermione realized she was toying with everyone, allowing secret desires and fears to surfaces in the minds of her audience. Until, finally, Molly could take it no longer.

"Ginevra! Don't keep us all waiting! Tell us the news!"

"Mother! You know I hate it when you call me that."

"Well then, _dear_, please do tell us what it is that is _so _important that you had to gather us all together," Molly replied emphasizing certain parts just to annoy Ginny. Hermione, and everyone else for that matter, had to stifle chuckles at how devious Molly could be. It was a rare sight indeed, when the door swung both ways on the sarcasm between mother and daughter.

"Fine," Ginny scoffed, and then smiled as if she could not contain her excitement for one more second, "Harry and I have decided to get married!"

Instantly, the room was overcome with shouts, and the occasional weeping. The joy was heavy on the air and, at last, after the Hell every one of them gone through…life was changing for the better.


	4. Happy Birthday

**Author's Note: **There is a part of this chapter that may not be suitable for younger children, and younger teens for that matter. Please read with caution!

**

* * *

****Chapter Three:**  
"_Happy Birthday_"

_Finally, the waitress reached her and handed the napkin and wine to her, explaining that it was already paid for. Before her parents could see the note, she snatched up the napkin and read:_

Piazza di San Marco  
10:30 pm  
-C.H.

_She could not help but smile. He wanted to meet her and talk to her…_

…_She saw him smiling at her, and only the thought of learning more about this intriguing creature filled her mind._

"_Hi. I'm Chris Halliwell. I saw you at the restaurant watching me and thought it be nice to properly meet you, since you appear to have an interest in me," he stretched his hand out to her, willing her to shake it._

_Slowly, she reached her hand to his and shook it, "Hello. I'm Hermione Granger. It's nice to actually meet you."_

_He smiled and appeared to pondering whether or not to say something, then decided against it and then finally deciding to say it, ventured, "So tell me about yourself…"_

…_He nearly begged her not to go, but she knew she had to. The next morning, she would be leaving for London. As she said her good bye, he stared at her intensely and then brushed a small piece of hair out of her face. For a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her, even wanted him to, but he seemed to have decided not to and merely settled for saying good bye._

"_Good bye, Hermione," and then before he walked off solemnly, "Until we meet again…"_

Over and over, in her dreams, her mind replayed the evening and, even more often, the parting. It was as if her mind pined for the memory of her joy that night. The memory of his scent. The memory of the way his eyes lit up whenever she laughed. It was as if her brain was in love with what could have been, though it registered that it never would be.

It was a sad thought, that they would never meet again. Hermione nearly compared it to the feeling one feels when just experiencing a break up of a great relationship, and though it was partially true, it was not the same. Chris Halliwell and Hermione Granger were nothing and would never be anything. Perhaps it was that her brain _needed_ some sort of masculine figure in her life to give her the feeling of security. After all, she'd had that for so long with Harry and Ron at Hogwarts and now she was on her own. But that shouldn't matter because she'd been alone since she was seventeen and she was now twenty-one. And then she registered that it wasn't entirely true. Her and Ron had begun dating during the Final Battle and had been dating continuously up until recently. Maybe it was true that her brain needed that sense of security. _Well, then my brain will just have to learn to live without. I'm an independent woman now,_ she thought to herself.

Sighing soberly, and despite that the fact her tired body protested, she got out of bed and headed towards the shower, after which she dressed for work and brushed her teeth. Finally, when all toiletries were complete, she left for work. When she arrived at work, she immediately went into her office and read the passages from the day before over and over again. But try as she might, she could not, for the life of her, understand what they meant. She then began paraphrasing line by line, and still she could not make sense of it. It was as if someone had taken random phrases that meant nothing and combined them all together. The thought disheartened her; this was her first real assignment and that there was a chance that it was worthless, meaningless even, nearly sickened her. Her job had become her life and, at the current moment, she did not intend to change that. And so she was determined to find at least _some_ meaning in the passages, even if it took the rest of her career.

Hours past and still she sat, slouched over her desk with papers upon papers of notes. She'd been working non-stop and now wanted nothing more than to go home and rest. Like a child who'd waken early on Christmas morning, she glanced at the clock and was very relieved to see it was time to go home. And so, she neatly stacked all her paperwork and, with a flick of her wand, all the papers flew into an awaiting filing cabinet and locked themselves in. Smiling, she gathered the rest of her possessions and left the building. After reaching the designated Apparation point, she Apparated home.

As was the norm, the lights were out and all was silent. And yet, something did not feel right. It felt as if she was not alone and that she was standing in the middle of a quiet room filled with many people. All of her senses were heightened and she was poised for the ambush, should there be one. Suddenly, out of the rigid silence, a whisper sounded:

"She knows we're here!"

And as her hand reached for her wand, the room was illuminated and a wave of voices echoed, "Surprise!"

"Happy Birthday, Hermione!"

She looked all around her living room and saw all of her friends and family gathered together. She saw her parents, Harry and Ginny, all the Weasley family, Luna, Neville and even Hagrid, though he was slightly bent over to keep from hitting his head on the ceiling. To her surprise, everyone wielded presents. Laughing off her paranoia, she gave everyone a hug, pausing slightly before hugging Ron. Harry's was brotherly, as was the rest of the Weasley clan. Molly's was caring and loving, even though she reprimanded her for being so thin. Her parents' were the same as always: possessive and nurturing. After everyone had been hugged, she opened presents. Presents preceded casual mingling. Up until the mingling, everything had gone well, but it was then that Ron chose to speak.

"Happy Birthday, Hermione."

Hermione moved a little uneasily in her seat, "Thank you."

"You know, I miss you, Hermione," he said so that none but she could hear.

She sighed, "Ronald, I'm sorry but I can't…I just can't. I don't want to put myself through that kind of heartbreak again."

"But I wouldn't hurt you."

She tried to laugh, "You've said that before."

"But I mean it this time."

"Yes. And you'll mean it the next time, too."

"Why can't you forgive me?"

"I do forgive you, Ronald; I really do, but I just cannot do that. I can't be with you again."

"I don't think you do. You don't forgive me, if you did you'd still want me."

"Oh, Ronald, why do you have to be so complicated?"

"Because I know you still love me."

"Are you so blind to realize that you just contrad--"

But she never finished her sentence, for at that precise moment Ron kissed her. For a brief moment, it was a fervor of passion but then Hermione calmed herself and abruptly pulled away. Ron looked at her with sad eyes and then got up and left. And Hermione forced herself not to think on it anymore.

Moments later, Molly called them all over to the dining table for cake, which they gladly received. And after the cake consumed, most of the guests left to go home. Harry and Ginny, however, stayed behind to help clean up. As they did so, Harry made his way to Hermione.

Smiling, he put his arm around her and said, "So what's this I hear about a Chris Halliwell?"

Hermione pulled away abruptly and spun to Ginny, who was now attempting to sneak out the main door, "Ginny! You told him?!"

Harry laughed, "Relax! I just want to know…that's all."

Hermione was defeated, "He's just some guy I met in Venice…"

"Do you fancy him?"

She began to say, 'No,' but she wasn't quite sure if that was the truth, but then finally she decided that it was best not to tell Harry that, "No, I do not fancy him."

He seemed a bit put down, but not convinced, "If you say so."

Not long after, Harry and Ginny left. Hermione was relieved. Now, after a long day at work and some hours of a party, she could sleep. Waving her wand to put the alarm spells in place, she walked into her bedroom and then into her bathroom to bathe. Once the temperature was right, she undressed and slid into the bath water. She added aromatic soap and bath salts. Hermione sighed, now all she needed were some candles and a good book. The heat of the water relieved her tension from work, her stress over Ron and his refusal to let her go. And in that moment, that simple fraction of time, she felt as if the entire world was at peace. Unfortunately, her peace-filled moment did not last.

Obtrusive sirens were ringing in her ears and throughout her apartment. Someone had broken through her protective shields and set off her alarm. Jumping up so fast that water splashed on the floor, Hermione reached for her robe. Throwing it on, she cursed at the fact that she would have to fight in nothing but a robe, soaking wet. Sprinting through her room, she grabbed her wand and burst through the door and into the living room. Just as she was about to fire a curse at whoever was trespassing in her house she saw Ron standing alone, with his back to her, in the middle of the living room.

He was standing still, but was swaying heavily. At first Hermione thought he was hurt and she went to go help him, but then she saw the nearly empty bottle of Firewhisky loosely held in his hand; he was drunk. She sighed and attempted to take the bottle from his hand but when she did so, he tightened his grip on it and spun around. She jumped back.

"Her-my-o-nee," he slowly pronounced, and she noticed he glanced at where her robe had fallen open a bit, "Her-my-o-nee. Her-my-o-nee. You're a heartless bitch, you know that?"

Hermione was somewhat shocked, but hid it well, "Ron, go home. You're drunk…you're not thinking clearly."

"NO! _You're _the one who's not thinking clearly! I made a mistake! And you've said you've forgiven me! But you still won't take me back!"

Hermione was almost afraid, she'd never seen Ron like this, "Ron…please, calm down. Go home and calm down, and maybe we'll talk about it in the morning."

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't realize you needed to get your _lie speech_ ready! I'll come back when you have it well-rehearsed!"

To Hermione's immense relief, he made like he was leaving but then at the last moment he furiously spun around and threw the bottle of Firewhisky at her. She ducked just as it would have hit her, causing it to hit the wall behind her instead.

"Ronald! Have you completely gone mental?!"

He laughed, as he made his way to her with greedy hands, "No! I've just now gained my sanity!"

At that precise moment, he darted to her with great speed but she was quicker and got out of his range. He looked at her with angry eyes and darted for her again, but this time she was not quick enough to stay away from his reach. He grabbed her shoulders with great strength fueled by anger and pushed her against the wall. He held her there for a few seconds and then laughed crazily and smacked her across the face. She gasped and tried to squirm from in-between the wall and his crushing body.

He just smirked at her and said, "Oh, you wanna play that game, do you? You _fucking_ tease!"

And his menacing hand crushed her breast, causing her to cry out in pain. He laughed and said, "You like that, don't you?" He did it again, but this time harder, and she screamed this time. She continued to squirm under his grip and he continued to laugh and slam his hands all over her. Each time she screamed and begged him to stop. Would he not stop? As if in answer to her prayers, the front door burst open in a loud explosion. Hermione was relieved to see a figure standing, wand at the ready, in the dust of the doorway. Ron let her go, jumped back and began to Apparate away but as he did, the figure stunned him. The figure came closer and Hermione could tell that it was a man, but nothing more. He came closer and closer still until she could finally see his face. Draco Malfoy, her neighbor, just glared at her and she couldn't help but stifle a gasp.

He snickered to himself, "You and that Weasel prat get into an argument again?"

She couldn't think of anything to say, "Th-Thank you."

"Oh, don't be piteous. I didn't do it for you more so than my ears. To hear a Mudblood scream…," he trailed off and shook his head. He waved his wand, probably summoning Aurors, and left her apartment without another word.

Hermione sat alone in silence for a few seconds and then numerous loud pops announced the arrival of Aurors. Ginny was the first to materialize and she ran to Hermione as soon as she could. She lightly placed her hands on Hermione's cheeks, checking her for major injuries. Then she glanced to where the Aurors were crowding around Ron and sighed.

"Oh Merlin, what has he done to you?"

Hermione tried to smile, but it faltered because she was still shaken up, "It's nothing, Ginny. He was just drunk."

Ginny looked as if she could cry, "But still! To think I have to cart in my brother to the Ministry because he attacked our best friend! My brother! Oh, Ronald _what have you done?_"

Hermione hugged Ginny and said that it was okay, but she just shook her head and said, "Let's get you to the Burrow. The rest will take care of Ron."

And so Hermione packed her things and Ginny took her to the Burrow. As Hermione crawled into Ginny's old bed and Ginny left for work, Hermione felt pretty bad about herself and cried herself to sleep. Somewhere deep inside her consciousness, though she knew it was not her fault, she blamed herself.


	5. Undetectable

**Chapter Four:  
**"_Undetectable_"

Sweat drenched his shirt, his heart pounded in his chest. He was in such a rush. The thrill of the chase was exhilarating. He heard his brother laughing somewhere nearby and knew that the feeling was mutual. His feet were flying ferociously through the air and his senses were alert to every detail, every sound and smell. He could hear the feet of their prey and was prepared for the kill. The demon would not get away this time.

Chris spun around a corner and came face to face with the demon. Seconds later, his older brother followed right behind him. They looked at one another for a brief moment and then Wyatt threw the potion to vanquish the demon and right as it hit the ground, the glass bottle shattering and releasing a red liquid-like substance, the demon vanished. Both brothers whistled with delight and high-fived before spinning around to go home. However, when they spun around, there stood the demon who, despite his distorted face, appeared to be smirking quite smugly.

"What the Hell?!"

He wasn't quite sure which brother had said it, but it didn't matter. With the experience of many trials and errors, he flicked his wrists and the demon blew up into a million unrecognizable, molecular pieces. Smirking, he silently thanked his mother for that wonderful and nearly, fail-safe power. Wyatt looked at him and they both just stared at where the demon had stood, almost afraid that he would come back once again. After a few moments, they both agreed that the demon was forever vanquished and walked back through the catacombs and into the light of the outside world. As they walked, Chris thought of Melinda, their younger sister, and how he knew she wished she could have come. But, of course, still younger than eighteen, no matter that she was seventeen, their parents would not allow her to fight demons with her older brothers. Usually, Melinda and Piper, their mother, would argue from the moment Chris and Wyatt would leave until, at least, a few days after their return. And usually, Melinda refused to speak to anyone in the family, save for Chris, for the duration of the week that followed. Melinda could definitely be stubborn at times.

When they reached the exit of the catacombs, they both exchanged glances and then disappeared into bright, white lights. In seconds, they reappeared in the attic of their family home, a gorgeous Victorian that had been in their family throughout four generations, going back all the way back to their Great-Great-Grandparents.

Wyatt yawned, "I'm starved. What say you, little brother?"

Chris shrugged, walked across the attic and down the stairs leading down to the second floor. As they headed down the steps to the first floor, Chris noticed that Wyatt seemed a little too happy about something. He was smirking and had an extra stride in his step. Finally, when they reached the bottom, Chris saw that his mother and father were sitting at the dining room table eating a late dinner. Wyatt's smirk grew as they walked through the dining room, heading for the kitchen.

Wyatt asked in a sing-song voice, "Chris?"

He bit his lip, "What?"

"When do you think you'll see, oh…what's-her-name, again?"

"Hermione?"

"Yeah…her."

"I don't know," he almost growled.

They were almost to the kitchen, just a few more steps and he would be home free.

"Who's Hermione?"

Chris stopped where he was standing and sighed. He looked towards his mother, who was waiting patiently, smiling, for an answer.

Wyatt laughed, "A girl that Chris likes."

Leo, his father, spoke, "Well, who is she? How'd you meet her?"

Chris ground his teeth together, "She's British. I met her when me and Wyatt were in Venice. I bought her a drink."

Wyatt perked up, "Don't forget to mention how you snuck out to St. Mark's Plaza with her and didn't come back until midnight."

Chris sighed. Wyatt had really done it this time.

Piper smiled, "Will I ever get to meet her?"

Chris tried to put her down gently, "I doubt it. I don't even know where she lives, exactly."

The room was silent for a moment and then Wyatt, it seemed, had an idea, "Why don't you scry for her?"

"Absolutely not!"

Wyatt looked at him inquisitively, "Why?"

"That's an invasion of privacy!"

He heard footsteps coming down the stairs and shortly after, Melinda appeared around the corner and into the dining room. She smiled at him and said, "I think you should do it."

"And why on Earth should I do it?"

"Please."

"Why?"

"Please."

"Why?"

"Please."

"No."

"Please."

"_Why_?"

"Because I want to know where my future sister-in-law lives."

Chris was extremely perplexed, "And how do you know _that_?"

"I just know."

Chris sighed, defeated, "Alright. Fine. I'll scry for her."

Melinda smiled and then sped off in the direction of the attic. Chris rolled his eyes. _And she wonders why mom and dad won't let her go fight demons. She's so immature!_ he thought to himself as he headed for his bedroom. He heard footsteps behind him and sighed. This was all Wyatt's fault and Chris would make sure that his older brother knew to stop acting like they both were still fifteen. When, finally, he made it to his bedroom, Chris walked to the dresser and opened a drawer; wherein he found a small, cardboard box. He sighed as he picked it up. Opening the box, he realized that Wyatt would bring up that he had kept her bracelet and would, surely, announce this sensitivity to the entire family. When Chris had found the bracelet that night in Venice, he had tried to call her back so that he could return it. But she never heard him and so he pocketed and took it home. For whatever reason, he had felt the need to protect it. He had placed it in a box and put the box in his drawer. Some part of him hoped that one day he would see her again and would have this as an excuse to talk to her again, maybe even take her on a proper date.

"What's taking so long, little brother?"

Chris turned to face his brother, standing in the doorway, with the most smug smile in the world. Chris said nothing but just pushed by him and went up to the attic. As suspected, the entire family stood there waiting for him. He sighed when he saw that they had already gotten out the crystal and a world map. He walked up to it, grabbed the string that was bound around the crystal with the hand that held her bracelet and waved it slowly over the map. As he concentrated, he could hear Wyatt mentioning the bracelet and how it was cute that Chris had kept it this whole time. He heard Melinda tell him to shut up, that Chris needed to be stay focused. He heard himself thinking, _Why is it taking so long? It should have found her by now._ Then suddenly, the crystal swung in circles until it finally flew from his hand and tumbled on the floor.

Chris jumped backwards and stared at the crystal with wonder. This had never happened before. What caused it to do this? Unless it couldn't find her, but that was impossible.


	6. the Premonition

**Author's Note:** Any ideas on why he can't find her? I'll give a special shoutout to the person who guesses correctly first!

Anyway, I'm glad you are enjoying the story so far! Everytime I see that someone has reviewed and that it's positve feedback, I get all excited and jump up and down a little - no lie! It makes me very happy to know that people actually enjoy these things that I come up with!

Now I guess I should tell you all how I'm coming along with the story. I have just started writting Chapter 27 - thus the reasoning for my quick updates, I've had most of these chapters done for months now - and I still have to write Chapters 28 through 32, then all I have left is the Epilogue. Chapter Six may be a few days away, however. I've got a pretty busy week coming up and I still have to read through it a couple of times to make sure that it is the way I want it written, but I promise you: it will be up _soon_!

Now I shall let you enjoy Chapter Five.

**

* * *

****Chapter Five:  
**"_the Premonition_"

Moments later found the family entirely perplexed. The only reason they could supply for the crystal reacting the way it did was that it could not find her, which was not possible. If she were dead, then that would explain it but they were unable to grasp the mere idea of either explanation. The entire family just stared at one another in silence, attempting to make sense of it. Through their heads ran numerous scenarios but each possibility was quickly debunked. Which each, the family was forced to return to the thought that she was dead.

Finally, Melinda spoke up, "Maybe one of my whitelighter brothers should try to sense her."

Chris shrugged and mumbled that it was worth a shot. Then, standing completely still, he closed his eyes and concentrated on her face, her very essence. Mentally, he scanned the globe in search of her. His breathing was slow and his mind was alert of every face and every voice. Suddenly, he locked on a familiar voice.

"_I just don't know if I can forgive him…_"

His breathe caught and he focused all his energy on that voice and tried so desperately to find a location. His mind raced across the Earth, but failed to pinpoint the brown-eyed beauty he searched for. She was alive, he knew that much by the sound of her voice, but he could not find her! She was defying all supernatural laws and he knew his family would not think of anything else until they found the reason why.

Finally, he opened his eyes and felt the familiar light-headedness. His family stared at him, anxiously waiting. Maybe he should lie and tell them that she was alive and well. Maybe he should pretend that he lost concentration while he was scrying and that was why it messed up. But he knew that they would suspect him of lying and would cast the truth spell on him and he would be forced to tell them anyway. Closing his eyes, he sighed.

"She's alive, but I couldn't find her."

His mother looked at him with inquisitive worry, "What do you mean?"

"I locked onto her voice, but when I tried to see where she was at…there was nothing."

His mother sighed and looked to his father, silently asking if he knew what was happening. His father just shrugged his shoulders.

After a moment's silence, Melinda said, "Well, I do have _two_ whitelighter brothers, you know."

Wyatt was nonchalant in saying, "Alright, I'll try to find my ickle brother's little girlfriend for him."

Melinda slapped him on the back of the head and told him to be nice. He just smiled, and then he closed his eyes. Everyone went quiet, waiting for Wyatt to have an answer. Chris pleaded, _Let it be just my powers messing up. Let her be safe. Let her not be a demon._ He did not relish the thought that he might have to kill her. At last, Wyatt opened his eyes.

"I don't know what it is, but something is blocking us from finding her. It's like some type of magical force field."

Their father looked perplexed, "That's odd."

And Chris knew that in all his father's years of being a whitelighter, though he was one no longer, he had never encountered an oddity such as this. He looked to his mother, who looked on the verge of pacing, and knew that in all her years of being a witch, she'd never seen something like this happen. And he felt guilty. If he had never bought that damn glass of wine, the family would not be sitting here wondering if they had another demon on their hands.

Finally, he asked, "How is it possible?"

Melinda shrugged, "Maybe she's a demon. Maybe she's in the Underworld."

Chris glared at her, "I thought you said that she was going to be your sister-in-law one day? And besides, whitelighters can't sense anything in the Underworld. And we could sense her."

"Yes, but you couldn't tell where she was at."

"But if she was in the Underworld, we wouldn't have been able to sense her at all!"

"Stop it, the both of you," Piper shouted at her youngest children, before she asked her husband, "Can whitelighters sense demons?"

He replied, "I think so."

Chris was nearly on his last nerve, "She's not a demon! And even if she was, scrying would have been able to find her!"

"Why didn't it, then," Wyatt counter-argued.

"I don't know!"

Piper, once again, interrupted an argument between her children, "Maybe we should call Phoebe and see if she can get anything off the bracelet?"

"I think that's probably the best," Leo agreed.

Chris did not want anymore family involved in this, "Mom! No! Don't worry about it! It's just some weird coincidence!"

Piper reached for her cell-phone, saying, "Almost every weird coincidence is magical and everything magical is important to us! She could be a warlock trying to steal your powers!"

Chris groaned, it was over. The battle had been won, his mother had put her foot down and there was no use arguing anymore. Right now, she was on the phone with his aunt, asking if she could come by and help with a _family emergency_, as they called it when one of the sisters needed to leave work to help fight some evil force of the supernatural. A short time later, Chris watched both his Aunt Phoebe and his Aunt Paige appear in by white lights. He groaned again, this was not so important that his entire family had orb in!

Mumbling under his breathe, he sighed, "They're treating me like a teenager."

Melinda leaned in beside him and whispered, so only he could hear, "Welcome to my world."

Phoebe approached the bracelet, now on the floor, and grabbed it. Immediately, her eyes closed and she was locked in premonition.

_She saw a curly-brunette standing over a broken, glass pitcher. Smiling, she waved a wooden stick and the pieces of the pitcher went back together and the pitcher reset itself on the table from which it had been knocked._

Seconds later, she opened her eyes and gasped, "Well that was interesting."

The entire family asked in unison, "What?!"

"I don't know if she is a demon, but she is definitely magical."


	7. Forgiveness

**Author's Note:** I do apolgize for the delay in this chapter. Weekdays are rather hectic for me and for the last couple of days I've been slightly too busy to make a post, but here is Chapter Six! It's rather short - I think - and, unfortunately, the next couple of chapters will also be rather short. But they will pick back up in length.

And as promised, a special shout-out goes to _GeeAnnaB_ for guessing why Chris and his family can't find Hermione! It is because she is at the Burrow and they charm their houses so that muggles cannot be seen!

**

* * *

Chapter Six:  
**"_Forgiveness_"

Hermione rolled over in her sleep. Her body ached and for a brief moment, she forgot where she was and why. Then, with waves of treachery, realization hit her. She was at the Burrow because of Ron. Because Ron got mad at her, went out and got drunk, came to her apartment, lost his control and assaulted her. Tears poured down her cheeks and she touched her tender breasts, covered in bruises. Her back was in pain, no doubt covered in bruises as well. All over, her flesh was screaming at her, infuriated at the abuse it had endured.

Finally, she willed herself the strength to get up and, still in the pajamas she'd borrowed from Ginny the night before, went down the stairs and into the kitchen. Molly was sitting at the table, drinking a cup of tea, when she entered.

Upon her entrance, Molly jumped and said, "Oh, Hermione, dear, you scared me."

"I'm sorry Mrs. Weasley; I couldn't sleep," Hermione apologized, noticing that the sun had yet to rise.

"Dear, how many times must I ask you to call me Molly?" the elder woman smiled.

Hermione attempted to smile back. As Hermione sat down, Molly got up from the table and grabbed another cup and poured Hermione some tea. She offered her some honey, which Hermione refused, and then sat back down. In silence, the two women drank their tea. After some moments had passed, Molly broke the silence.

"I am sorry for Ronald's behaviour last night, I should have raised him better," she said, and in response to Hermione questioning gaze, "Ginny woke me and told me."

Hermione sighed, "I don't blame you Mrs. Weas--," she caught herself, "Molly…There is nothing that you could have done to prevent this."

Molly still looked troubled, "Yes, but…my son did this. To _you_ of all people! The blame has to go somewhere and I consider it selfish to place the blame on Ronald; I raised him!"

"Molly, I don't even blame Ron. We had a hard breakup and he is having difficulty adjusting. He was drunk, I know it will not happen again."

Molly just simply smiled and said, "He loves you greatly and I know why: You have a wonderful heart."

"I know, but I just don't know if I can forgive him…what he did was just more than I could take."

Molly sighed, "Maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

Hermione could not help but think of Chris, for if she and Ron had still been dating when she went to Venice, she would have never gone out with Chris and she wondered if it would have made as much of a difference in her, "Maybe."

Molly looked out the window and saw that the sun had begun to rise, she rose up from her chair and smiled, "Time to start breakfast!"

Hermione got out of her chair, despite her limbs reprimanding her for it, "Would you like me to help?"

Molly turned her down, saying that she needed her rest. Hermione, somewhat discouraged and somewhat grateful, sat back down as Molly began cooking. Hermione smiled that she cooked the muggle way; you put more love into the food that way. It reminded her of something Molly had often said when she was a teenager, "_Just because you can use magic for everything, doesn't mean you _should." Hermione watched as Molly put bacon into a pan, followed by eggs, allowing the bacon grease to cook the eggs all the way through. She made toast and got out orange juice, more tea, coffee and milk. Hermione smiled, remembering all the summers she had spent at the Burrow and all the wondrous meals she had ate. They made small-talk for the duration of the preparation and, to Hermione's great surprise, Molly even allowed her to set the table. Hermione counted the plates that Molly had gotten out and noticed that it seemed every family member would be present. When Hermione questioned this, Molly simply said, "Consider this your birthday breakfast."

Not long after the table had been set, Arthur came down the stairs and folded Hermione in a loving hug. For a moment before, he looked at her sorrowfully but then he smiled. Mere seconds had passed before family members arrived via floo and Apparation. Hermione was hugged by each one and part of her was not pleased by the hugs. Part of her felt that they were only hugging her because of what Ron did. Finally, everyone sat down to eat and Hermione noticed that someone was missing. She looked around and realized that Ginny was still at work.

And so they ate in silence. The food was memorably delicious. There were mumbles of appreciation throughout the assembly of guests. Then, in the middle of their breakfast, Ginny Apparated into the kitchen and looked at Hermione solemnly. She motioned for Hermione to follow her up the stairs and into her bedroom. Once in, she turned around to face Hermione.

"I need to know if you want to press charges against Ron."

Hermione stared at her for a moment before it fully registered in her mind what she meant and then she answered, "No."

"I'm sorry, but I need it in writing."

Hermione sighed and glanced around for some spare parchment and a quill. Finally, when she found them she wrote:

_I, the undersigned, Hermione Jean Granger, do not wish to hold Ronald Bilius Weasley accountable for the actions he committed against me the previous night to this._

And then she signed her name and dated the parchment. She watched Ginny sign her name under hers, stating that she had witnessed the writing of the document. She quickly hugged Hermione before they both headed back down to the kitchen. Hermione resumed her place at the table and Ginny gave her love to the family, saying that she would be back momentarily with Ron. The family continued eating until a loud pop signaled the promised arrival. There Ron stood, unshaven and dirty. She sighed at how the tension immediately formed when he materialized. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but was too afraid to speak. Then, it seemed, he gathered the courage.

"Hermione, I'm so sorry."

She tried to smile, "It's alright, Ron," and then she tried to relieve the tension by making a joke, "So long as you don't do it again…I'll have to hex you."

He chuckled a bit and then both him and Ginny sat down to breakfast. The entire family returned to their eating. Despite the forgiveness she had just given, however, Hermione could not help but feel that the air to room was tangible. Sighing, she took a bite of her bacon. Things were certainly spiraling out of control.


	8. Getaway

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Seven! I hope you enjoy it! And after you read this chapter, how about you check out the poll I have up on my profile? I could really use your help in deciding which should be my next story, although I am considering combining two of the ideas I have up, but I won't say which ones.

I should have Chapter Eight up tomorrow; I went on an editing spree today. I've edited up to Chapter Sixteen now!

**

* * *

****Chapter Seven:  
**"_Getaway_"

It was a lovely day in Diagon Alley and as Hermione sat with Luna waiting for Ginny to show them the dress she had picked out, Hermione couldn't help but feel a tad carefree. The three friends were having a girls-day-out while picking out things for Harry and Ginny's wedding. It was quite exciting to be out with friends, with no worries and carefully choosing items for what would be the happiest day of her best friends' life. Sighing calmly, she looked to Luna, who was now swaying in her seat and swinging her legs back and forth. Hermione couldn't help but laugh. Then, the curtain hiding Ginny opened to reveal the dress she had picked. Hermione was shocked, for the dress was white silk, low-cut and held a slit that went to the middle of her thigh.

She laughed, spinning around narcissistically, "What do you think? Isn't it just to die for?"

Luna smiled dreamily, whereas Hermione laughed hysterically, "I think that Harry would have a heart attack."

Ginny wrinkled her nose and laughed, "Yeah, you're probably right."

And so she returned to the dressing room and changed back into her clothes. When she was ready, they left the shop and decided to go to the nearby ice-cream parlour. They sat down and ordered their ice-cream and when the ice-cream came, relished in the flavour. Hermione enjoyed her vanilla ice-cream in all its plainness. She enjoyed its simplicity and the basic taste it held.

"So Hermione, how are things with Chris?"

Hermione looked up to see Ginny smiling smugly, "Well, things with Chris are nonexistent."

Luna perked up, "Who is this Chris?"

Hermione explained, "He's someone I met in Venice. He bought me a drink and we talked for a while in St. Mark's Plaza. It's nothing," and then she sighed.

Ginny looked at her, worry almost etched into her eyes, "What is it?"

"It's just that…I know I'll never see him again, but I cannot get him out of my mind."

Ginny smiled, "Well then maybe you should take a vacation from everything. Just pack up and go on a trip with me and Luna; we we're thinking about going to America soon, anyway."

"That's probably not a good idea."

"Why?"

"Because I can't. I just got this really great opportunity at work and--"

"So. Take some time off of work."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"I would never be able to get the time off."

Ginny smiled wide, "Well, you never know until you try. Why don't we all try to get off of work two weeks from now and go to America for a week. And if one of us can't, we'll try for another time."

Luna was very enthusiastic, "That sounds wonderful!"

Hermione groaned and rejected once more, but was finally persuaded to give in, "Alright, but I'm bringing what I'm working on with me."

Ginny laughed, "That's what you think."

The following morning, at work, Hermione forced herself to go to the Head Unspeakable's office and request a week long vacation.

"I am coming because of the idiotic idea my friends had of me asking for a week long vacation two weeks from now. My friends have requested I go with them to America. I will fully respect your decision should you say no. In fact, I expect no other response."

Her boss stared at her for a moment and she was almost certain that she would be reprimanded when, "A week? Why not take a whole month? Beginning now. Unspeakable Granger, you have been married to your work ever since you and that boyfriend of your's broke up. It's about time you had vacation. Now go on, go home."

Hermione was stunned. A whole month? What in the bloody Hell was she supposed to do for an entire month? She got home and was stomping. She'd barely wanted a week and she got an entire month! She didn't care what she had been told, she would work on figuring out what those passages meant the whole month and when she returned to work she would reveal her results to the Head Unspeakable. Hermione Granger not work for a month, it was preposterous! Sighing to herself, she grabbed some parchment and a quill and wrote to Ginny and Luna inviting them over that night; they might as well begin planning their trip.

Hermione had brought out some chips and candy for her friends, when Ginny and Luna arrived. She led them into the dining area, where they found heaven in the junk-food. They all sat down and began discussing where they should go and what they should see. Ginny and Luna both wanted to go to San Francisco; Ginny wanted to go so that she could go to a local club that one of her friends had told her about and Luna just simply wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge. They both insisted that Hermione pick a place. She knew of a place that her cousin in New Orleans told her about. It was a beautiful southern, antebellum plantation and she'd even been sent pictures of her cousin during her stay there.

"Well, if I had to choose a place to go…it would probably be Oak Alley Plantation."

Ginny curiously looked at her, "Oak Alley Plantation? Where is that at?"

"It's somewhere near New Orleans, my cousin there told me about it."

Luna smiled and Ginny seemed to enjoy the thought of visiting a southern plantation, "Alright. We'll go to this plantation of your's."

Hermione beamed, "I'll call my cousin tomorrow to see if she can make the arrangements for us to stay a night there; she has friends that work there. How about we stop at her house first, that way she can help us get necessities ready?"

"Call? Necessities?"

"Muggle form of communication," Hermione said, before adding, "Necessities like a car to get there and some money for food and such."

With the plans made, Ginny and Luna left for home. Hermione glanced at the clock and saw that it was getting late. She went into the bathroom, bathed and then did her toiletries. Then, she climbed into her bed, cuddled close to herself under her blanket and went to sleep. Chris Halliwell plaguing her dreams the whole night.


	9. Mint Juleps

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Eight, as promised! It's rather short, as is Chapter Nine but I do believe that once we hit Chapter Ten the chapters start to get a bit longer. Thank you all so much for your reviews - I thrive off of those lovely little things - and for being patient with Chris not showing up a lot; I couldn't have them meet in Venice and instantly fall in love, now could I? But here's a little secret for all my readers anxious for Chris to reappear..._he'll be back in Chapter Ten_! And then, I believe, we start to see a lot more of him.

Enjoy...

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Chapter Eight:  
**"_Mint Juleps_"

Two weeks later, under the cover of night, the girls walked in silence to Hermione's cousin's house in New Orleans. They had Apparated together out of Hermione's apartment and now they were walking the streets. It was about 4:30 in the morning and they had quite a few more blocks to go. Finally, they reached their destination and there stood Hermione's cousin. It was immediately apparent to Ginny and Luna that had they not known she was Hermione's cousin, they would have never realized that the two were even related. She had olive-skin and deep, green eyes. Her hair was a violet-black and held back tightly in a bun, with some strands of hair falling romantically around her face. She was wearing a red tank-top with black sweat-pants. She wore flip-flop slippers and was holding a black cat.

Upon their arrival, Hermione ran up to her cousin and embraced her. The two smiled and her cousin said in a thick southern accent, "Hermione, sweetheart, would you please hold Aphrodite for me. I think I should properly introduce myself to your friends."

Hermione willingly took the cat from her cousin's arms and cradled her in her arms, rubbing her under the neck and chuckling a bit when the cat purred. Her cousin walked up to Ginny and Luna and shook each of their hands.

She smiled a perfectly white smile at them, "Ginny, Luna, it is so nice to meet you. I'm Hermione's cousin, Lorelai."

They then went into the house and sat in the living room, where Lorelai offered them some breakfast, "Anyone want some Gumbo?"

Hermione laughed, "Gumbo? For breakfast?"

Lorelai laughed, "Sure! Why not?"

Hermione smiled, "I wouldn't want to trouble you with making Gumbo this early in the morning."

"Oh, it's no trouble at all…I have some leftovers from last night."

Hermione glanced at the clock and saw that it was now 5:15. If they left at eight, as they had planned, they would have two hours and forty-five minutes for visiting, which included plenty of time to eat.

"I'd like some, if that's alright," Hermione said, "But I don't know if Ginny and Luna will like it, they've never had it before."

Ginny spoke up, "It's worth a shot, I'm up for trying something new. What about you, Luna?"

"It sounds dreamy."

And so, Lorelai went into the kitchen and gathered some Gumbo in some bowls. Hermione led them into the dining room, where a fire was burning in the fireplace. Lorelai placed the bowls and spoons on the table and then returned to the kitchen. When she came back, she was, somehow, carrying 4 glasses of tea.

"Y'all just haven't lived 'til you have some of my southern tea."

Hermione smiled, "Yes, you're tea is absolutely delicious, but don't forget to warn them how sweet it is."

"It's not that sweet…Oh, well I suppose if you're not use to it, then it is."

They all laughed and ate their breakfast and drank their tea. Then they all returned to the living room and watched the television, much to the great amusement of Ginny and Luna. As an added treat, one of the television channels was playing a show where people who hunted ghost went to Oak Alley Plantation, which they would leave for in one hour. After the show went off, Lorelai gave them the needed money and keys to a spare car and wished them a good trip, saying that she'd see them in the morning. And so they set off on the one hour trip to the plantation. Luna and Ginny seemed intrigued by the mechanics of a car and Hermione couldn't help but find it quite comical. They were very amused by everything that each button could do, every knob and and even the simplistic glove-compartment.

Finally, they arrived at Oak Alley Plantation. The gorgeous, antebellum plantation sat behind a row of twenty-eight, three hundred year old oak trees. They checked into the bed and breakfast, set all their things into their rented cottage and then agreed to take the tour of the mansion. It was quite fascinating. Every room was like a work of art, every fact a riveting novel. Hermione yearned to live in a home such as this, to relish in its beauty each morning. But, alas, all good things must come to an end and their tour was over. They then went to the plantation's restaurant and ate a magnificent lunch. At the restaurant, they were able to order a pitcher of Mint Juleps to be sent to their cottage.

When they returned to the cottage, sitting on the living room table was the ordered pitcher. Hermione smiled and poured each of them a glass, which they all gladly received. After the cups had been downed, Ginny's face lit up with an idea.

"Let's make this more interesting. We should add some Veritaserum to the pitcher, place a spell on the pitcher so that it refills itself and play a game of shots."

Hermione and Luna agreed and they began the game. Luna was the first one to loose the game of shots, chose truth, and was forced to reveal something that she had never told anyone before.

"In third year, I secretly fancied Malfoy."

Hermione was shocked and laughed. Ginny exclaimed, "It's always the quiet ones!"

Hermione was the next to loose and she chose truth as well, "In fourth year, Viktor and I were _intimate_ once."

Ginny asked, "So Viktor Krum, internationally renowned Quidditch player, was your _first_?!"

Hermione nodded and Ginny laughed, "Blimey! Why is it always the quiet ones?"

All the girls laughed and played again. Ginny lost next and chose truth. Hermione asked, "Why is everyone picking truth?"

Ginny and Luna shrugged, then Ginny revealed, "I might be pregnant, and Harry doesn't know yet."

Luna swayed and sighed dreamily, "That's lovely"

Hermione laughed, "Then you probably shouldn't be drinking."

Ginny looked at the glass in her hands and said, before downing half of its contents, "Probably not."

All the girls fell back laughing and continued playing into the late hours of the night.


	10. the Broken Pitcher

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Nine! It's _really_ short and I do apologize for that, but it's mostly just a filler chapter anyhow. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy!

Oh! And I actually meant to do this a couple of chapters ago, but I forgot. A special shout-out goes to: _Winter's Empire_ for being the 10th reviewer! I'm glad to see that this story is getting so much positive response! You guys really make my day!

As a final note, why don't you check out my website? I've recently posted a blog on it and it has a special sneak peak at two stories I am currently working on the plot for. It also has a question for my readers! Go check it out. You can find the link on my homepage!

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Chapter Nine:  
**"_the Broken Pitcher_"

Hermione woke the next morning with the most outrageous headache that anyone could have ever thought imaginable. It was an excruciating and blinding pain, which, combined with a deep, unsettling nausea, made her feel as if she would never move again. How many of shots of Mint Juleps had been ingested? Were Ginny and Luna still asleep, or were they lying in bed cursing themselves as well? Hermione attempted to move, but her head and stomach protested. She was in a loosing battle against her own body and by the yelling and screaming her head was doing, she would agree to never drink again. But she knew that was a lie; she was not a drunk but every once and a while a nice glass of wine went heavenly with dinner, a healthy shot of liquor went quite pleasantly with a bad mood. And so Hermione compromised with her body instead, she would not drink so much as to become intoxicated unless the circumstances called for it.

At long last, she finally was able to muster the ability to get off of the couch, which had served as her bed the night before, and walked the long distance across the room and into the small dining room to go into her purse and grab the much welcomed Anti-Hangover Potion. She quickly downed the potion and when she was free of the nausea and the headache, she looked around at her surroundings. Both of the bedroom doors to the cottage they were staying in were shut, so she inferred that Luna and Ginny were both fast asleep. Taking advantage of the situation, she returned to her purse and sought the papers that the passages had been inscribed on. For an hour, she studied them closely and even once almost came close to finally understanding it but when she went to write down her realization, she realized that it made no sense whatsoever. Then, she heard movement from one of the bedrooms and became conscious of the fact that should Ginny walk in and see her working, she would give her Hell and take the papers from her for the rest of the trip. Heart nearly racing, Hermione quickly stuffed the papers back into her purse and sat down on the couch just as Luna's bedroom door opened.

"Beautiful morning, isn't it," she asked with her usual dreaminess when she saw Hermione awake, "You didn't pack some Anti-Hangover Potion, by chance?"

Hermione was amazed at the way she held herself together, especially if her hangover was as bad as Hermione's. Nonetheless, she went to her purse and got out the vial for Luna, who seemed to be greatly appreciative. They then sat together on the couch in silence, waiting for Ginny to wake so that they may pack up and leave. Hermione looked to the coffee-table and saw that the pitcher of Mint Juleps from the night before was still resting upon it. She briefly considered taking it outside and dumping it out, but then she recalled that, due to a spell they had cast on the pitcher, it would just simply refill itself and she would be back to where she started.

Quiet mumbling from the next room, signaled that Ginny was awake and not too happy about her hangover. She came out of the room saying, "Bloody Hell, I'll never drink again!"

Hermione just simply smiled and got up from her place on the couch, which Ginny quickly stole, and returned to the living room with Ginny's vial. Ginny downed the potion much like she had downed the Mint Juleps from the night before, but this time she made a face as soon as the potion hit her lips. Hermione chuckled, she had never said it was the best tasting potion, but then again…most potions weren't. All hangover free, they began to pack up their belongings, which consisted of numerous tiny items and when they had managed to track down every single item and place them in their pockets, Luna ran into the coffee-table. Both Hermione and Ginny laughed, and Luna looked up at them nearly blushing. She knew it was probably wrong of her to think such thoughts, but Hermione believed it was nice to see Luna loose her dreamy composure, if even for a brief second.

Hermione walked up to where the broken glass and alcohol had spilled onto the floor and smiling, she waved her wand and the pieces of the pitcher went back together and the pitcher reset itself on the table from which it had been knocked. Due to the fact that it had been broken, the spell they had used to make it refill continuously had now become void. With the pitcher fixed, all of the girls headed out to the car and drove the hour-long drive back to Lorelai's house. When they finally returned to the house, Lorelai had prepared some shrimp-cocktails for them all and they sat down in her dining room to eat. It was a magnificent lunch, but Hermione, Ginny and Luna were on a tight schedule and had to leave as soon as it was finished. They're next stop would be San Francisco, California.


	11. Abduction

**Author's Note:** Another chapter for my wonderful readers; that last one was _way_ too short to leave you with! And so, here we are with a much longer chapter and, as of right now, my favorite chapter. I hope you enjoy!

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Chapter Ten:  
**"_Abduction_"

Hermione, Ginny and Luna Apparated into a desolate alley-way in San Francisco. They walked a few blocks until they found the hotel that they had made their reservations for the night. They each were to have their own room and their own bed to sleep in, so that no one would be sleeping on the couch again. (_Thank Merlin!_) They checked in and with great _luck_ they were presented with the keys to three conjoining rooms. They each went into their rooms, dropped off their items and returned to the hallway. Hermione then gave her friends some money for the mall. That night, they were going to go to the local club that Ginny wanted to go to and were going to purchase new clothes to go in. Early in the evening, after shopping and before the local club, they were going to go to a restaurant that Lorelai had told Hermione about. Supposedly, it was owned by the mother of the brothers who owned the local club, which would provide for an interesting and memorable experience.

In a rented car on the way to the mall, all was silent. When they made it to the mall, they all went their separate ways. The first store that Hermione went into did not exactly fit her taste and so she left and went to another. The next one had many dresses, of all shapes, sizes and colours. Near the back of the store, looking at an impossibly horrid dress, was Luna. Hermione just smiled, shook her head and went to another corner of the store. Immediately, Hermione saw three dresses that she could see herself wearing. One was a simple black and white, plaid dress; one was a black dress with a simple silver rose embroidered at the bottom; the final was a simple red dress with thin straps. She grabbed all three and went to the dressing room. She tried on the first, but did not like the way it fit her. With the next, the cut over her bosom made her feel a little trashy. With the last, as soon as she slid the fabric on, she knew that it was the one that she would wear. The decision made, she gathered up the dress and paid for it. She then went into a shoe store, where she saw Ginny looking at a pair silver, strapped high-heeled shoes. Looking at all the shoes she could choose from, Hermione saw a pair that would just match perfectly. They were red high-heels and had a small rose on the toe of each shoe. Without even thinking much about it, she grabbed the shoes and paid for them.

Not long after, Hermione, Ginny and Luna all met in the spot where they had agreed. They drove back to the hotel, dropped their dresses off in their hotel rooms and then left for the restaurant. When they arrived at the restaurant, Ginny spoke, "_Charming Delicacies_? What an interesting name for a restaurant."

Luna, of course, thought it was perfect, "Actually, I think it's quite fitting."

Hermione just smiled, and they all entered the restaurant and were seated. The waiter came up to them and asked what they would like to drink and if he could get them any appetizers.

Ginny wanted a glass of wine but Hermione reprimanded her, so she settled for a soda. Hermione wanted sweet tea and Luna wanted a glass of lemonade with a lime. They all decided they did not want any appetizers. Later, when they were ready to order their meal, Hermione ordered the Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo; Ginny order the Lasagna; Luna ordered the Shrimp Alfredo with Mushrooms. Upon Luna's order, Hermione and Ginny just looked at each other and smiled.

Finally, when their food was placed in front of them, the three friends devoured the food instantly. When all the food was gone, they were offered desert. Hermione wanted a Small Brownie Ice-Cream Sundae. Ginny wanted two pieces of Chocolate Cake; which only added to their suspicion of her being pregnant. Luna asked for an Orange Covered Vanilla Sundae. After the desert was gone, they paid the bill, left the tip and returned to the hotel to get ready for the club. Hermione put on the dress and shoes. She did her make-up lightly and put only a little bit of her hair up. Finally, Ginny opened her door and revealed her simple, little-black-dress, silver heels and jewelry. She did a little spin when she opened the door and was smirking greatly. She looked Hermione over once and nodded in approval. Luna opened her door next. She was wearing a dress of an unknown colour; it was almost like a gold-ish orange. She wore gold shoes and her "radish" earrings.

She smiled, opened her arms wide and asked, "It's it lovely? Don't you just love it?"

Hermione and Ginny looked at each other and said, "Oh! Yeah! It's wonderful!"

Leaving once again, they got into a taxi and crossed the Golden Gate Bridge, Luna smiling the whole way. They arrived at the club named "P3" and could hear the live music playing through the door. At the door, the bouncer carded them and then they were allowed entrance. They went to the dance floor and began dancing to the upbeat song. According to Ginny, there were at least four gorgeous males checking them out. Hermione laughed.

Luna answered with her usual dreamy sigh, "That's lovely."

Just then, one of the men came up to Luna and asked if he could buy her a drink. She smiled and said, "I'd love to." And he stole her away.

Ginny laughed, "Looks like it's just you and me, Hermione."

Hermione smiled back, "Do you think we'll see her again tonight?"

Ginny looked to where Luna and the man were now dancing, "Well, judging by the looks of this one…I won't be surprised if we don't see her for another week."

Hermione sighed, "Quite interesting how he chose her over one of us. Normally, men find her strange."

"She is a little strange, but that's what makes it so wonderful to be her friend. It makes her unique and keeps things interesting. And who knows? Maybe he likes the dreamy type."

Hermione smiled, "Maybe. It's about time someone took interest in her."

And they continued dancing for a while. Two men came up to them and whisked Hermione and Ginny throughout the dance floor. Hermione laughed and smiled. Then when the dance was over, Hermione and Ginny were reunited at a table. Moments later, Luna returned with an indifferent look on her face.

Hermione, worried, asked, "What's wrong? Is he not what you thought?"

Luna sighed, "Oh, he was wonderful; completely sweet and fun. That is, until his wife showed up."

Ginny nearly shouted, "His _what_?!"

"His wife."

Hermione placed her hand on Luna's shoulder, "Oh, hun, that's terrible."

Ginny was turning quite protective, "Where is he? I'll kick his arse, if you want me to?"

Luna smiled, "No, actually, I think his wife took care of that for me."

They all laughed. And it was then that Hermione saw him. He was standing by the bar smiling, just looking around at the club. There were people bustling all around him, asking him questions and apparently congratulating him. Someone said something to him and made him laugh; Hermione nearly lost all ability to breathe. The creature standing across the club before her was an angel of magnificence, a person of the most impossibly achievable beauty and yet there he was exhibiting perfect poise and comfort. Just the mere sight of the angel before her made her heart leap and her breath quicken. Not fully aware of what she was doing, Hermione excused herself to the bathroom and made in the direction of the very man who had haunted her dreams for weeks. Chris caught sight of Hermione making her way to him and his smile faded. Hermione looked at him quizzically, but he merely spun around and left. She was confused; had they not had a good time in Venice? Why did he appear to be so mad? Completely disheartened, she approached the bar and ordered a shot of liquor.

"One shot of Fire--," she had to catch herself before she said Firewhiskey, "A shot of vodka, please."

"Straight? Or mixed?"

She smiled, "Straight."

Hermione intended to entirely forget about Chris Halliwell and the night they spent together in Venice. When the glass of vodka came, she downed it instantly and ordered another. And so the process repeated; drinking one and ordering another. It remind her very much of work, for it kept her busy and her mind off of what she so desperately avoided. Slowly, she allowed herself to become intoxicated and all her troubles slipped away. Almost as if the forces of fate were in her favour, a very attractive man appeared beside her and asked if the seat beside her was taken. She said no and downed her next shot.

"You don't seem to be in much of a good mood," the man observed.

She tried to smile, "Oh, it's nothing."

"Guy trouble?"

She just nodded and he proceeded, "Aww…did your boyfriend leave you for a girl not nearly as pretty as you?"

"Well…in a way…but this was months ago."

"Really? What happened?"

"I came home to my apartment--our apartment at the time--and saw him snogging his ex-girlfriend on the couch!"

"Well, that's just awful," the man smiled and lightly caressed her cheek, "How could he ever want anyone other than you?"

All of Hermione's logic was telling her she should leave, that she should not be talking to this man and allowing him to touch her as if they were lovers, but another side of her wanted to leap onto the chance of no commitment for one night.

"Yes," she smiled, "well, maybe he's blind?"

"He'd have to be."

For a moment, he looked like he was trying to make a very serious decision and then he said, "Come on, I want to show you something."

He lead her to the back room, which was scattered with posters. He half-smiled and drew her closer. They just stared at one another and all time became endless, and then he kissed her. It was light and nearly apologetic, and, though it confused her, she allowed the kiss to consume her. He trailed kisses down to her neck, and then something wasn't right.

She felt like she was light, as if she didn't weigh anything, and spinning. She tried to pull away, for the entire thing was making her nauseous, but the man just held her tighter. She glanced around to find the door, but was frightened even more to realize that it appeared they were not in the room anymore. All around them, were bright, little white orbs. Finally, the sensation ended and she was being lowered into what appeared to be a chair. She opened her eyes and saw that she was no longer in the back room of a club, but in what appeared to be a basement. She looked up to where the man should have been standing, however, he no longer was there! In front of her stood Chris Halliwell. Hermione raised her eyebrow to him but he merely reached into his pocket and pulled out a little glass vial. He waved it in front of her almost mockingly and then threw it at the concrete ground near her feet. It shattered and she instantly felt as if all power was being sucked clean out of her. She started to say something but he merely put his hand over her mouth, saying, "Shhsh."

Out of nowhere, he grabbed ropes and bound her to the chair. He checked to see if they were good and tight and when he seemed satisfied, he left her alone in the dark basement; if it was indeed a basement. Realization of her situation hit her and she was overwhelmed with a wave of nausea. All that she saw around her went hazy. Panic set in and she found herself loosing a grip on reality and slipping into the world of her subconsciousness. For moments, she struggled but then, unable to stop herself, she vomited on the floor and the chair collapsed sideways.


	12. Chris Reprimanded

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Eleven! It's a bit short and I do apologize. It was originally much longer but it's no secret that I love to write cliff-hanger ending to chapters...so that's how this one turned out! Enjoy...

A special shout-out goes to _Kimiko16_ for being the 20th reviewer! I am greatly honored that you all like this story so much!

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Chapter Eleven:  
**"_Chris Reprimanded_"

It was closing time at P3 and Wyatt was anxious to get home. He picked up a half-filled glass of wine off the bar, not noticing two women -- one red head and a blonde -- walk into the club's bathroom. He poured out the wine and placed the cup on his tray to take back to the kitchen. Walking towards the kitchen, he noticed the two women walking out of the bathroom.

Wyatt spoke up, "Ladies! We're closing up, you need to head out."

The red-haired woman replied, "We know…we were just trying to find our friend. She went to the bathroom ages ago and never came back."

His mind filled with numerous theories, most of which consisting of a demonic reason, "Do you think she's gone missing, or she was kidnapped?"

The blonde spoke this time, shaking her head, "Oh, no," and then she looked to her friend, "Maybe she left with someone? She could have forgotten to let us know."

Her friend seemed to agree and, thanking him for his help, they left. Wyatt shook his head and proceeded to take the tray to the kitchen. _Where is Chris?_ he wondered to himself, _He's supposed to help me with the club!_ Frustrated, he finished up his duties and, after looking around to make sure no one could see, orbed into the Manor's kitchen. Appearing in the usual white lights, he wished he had not.

"You're the one who said she could be a warlock!"

Wyatt looked on to see his mother and his brother locked in argument over something Chris had done.

His mother looked absolutely furious, "Yes, but does that give you the authority to hoist her from the club and lock her in the basement?!"

Now Wyatt understood. Chris had apparently captured his possible-demon-girlfriend and was now holding her captive in the basement. He just could not help but cut in, "Wait! So she's here?"

He laughed as the two turned to face him, now becoming aware of his presence.

"Yes! He kidnapped her," his mother replied, and then she returned her fury to Chris, "Are you crazy? Have you completely lost your mind? You could have just exposed us _all_!"

"But I was under glamour. And Aunt Phoebe says she's magical, too!"

"But you brought her _here_. To the Manor, to _our_ house! Now she knows where we live and she can bring more of her little warlock friends to attack us! If you just brought evil to us…," and then she made an inaudible exasperated sound, "Do you not remember who we came from? Melinda Warren? Remember her? Remember how she was burned at the stake for being a witch? Remember her sacrifice? This entire family is made of witches and blessed because of that sacrifice…and you could have doomed us all."

Chris looked as if he'd been about to say something in his defense but whatever it had been was lost, for at that moment a loud crash was heard from below them. Leo came running into the room from the dining room wanting to know what happened. Without answering, Piper ran straight for the basement door, opened it and flew down the steps. At the bottom, she saw Hermione, still tied up, laying in the chair on the concrete. She gasped and hit her son, who had just come down, and ran to the girl. Untying her, she quickly checked her vitals. All seeming well, Leo came and picked her up, he then carried her to the living room and placed her gently on the couch. Piper noticed the vomit on the floor, looked to her youngest son and said quite smugly that he would be the one to clean it up.

Piper, Wyatt and Chris all headed into the living room to see how Hermione was doing. Disappointed, they watched her lay there, quietly breathing and making no movement at all. Melinda came running down the stairs and wanted to know why she'd heard so much noise.

"Go back to bed, it's a school night," Piper told her.

Melinda grumbled, "I never get to do anything," and then she did as she was told.

For some more time they watched her in silence, until she finally started to stir. Piper looked at her son in worry, terrified that the slumbering girl would know and would tell. Hermione's eyes flew open, wandered around her surroundings and then landed on Chris. Anger formed on her face and she pointed at him, shouting, "You!"


	13. What are Death Eaters?

**Author's Note:** Here is Chapter Twelve, just for _GeeAnnaB_ like she asked! Haha...I hope you all enjoy! Keep the reviews coming; they inspire me to keep working on Chapter Twenty-Seven!

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Chapter Twelve:  
**"_What are Death Eaters?_"

Hermione's heart raced and she, though her body and all it's aches protested, launched herself at him. It was in her heart's desire to tear him limb from limb or, at the very least, make _his_ entire body ache. The nerve of that man, the fact that he had the audacity to kidnap her, _her!_, Hermione Jean Granger, infuriated her. She, who had helped Harry fight the most evil man there had ever been, had been kidnapped by someone she had thought she could trust. And even as his brother closed his arms around her in attempt to stop her from attacking, she wondered: what if he was a Death Eater, someone who intended to start anew and once again commit mass genocide against muggle-borns? Fueled by this, she was able to break free of the grip his brother held her in and launch at Chris once more.

Punching him furiously in the chest, she turned as a young girl came flying down the steps saying, "What is happening? I want to know!"

The young girl looked at Hermione and then to the rest of her family, shook her head and said, "I'm going back to bed."

When she was gone, Hermione proceeded to pound her fist into his chest. She doubted she was hurting him, but didn't care. She didn't care if he meant to harm her or not, if he was a Death Eater or not. Either way, she was already hurt. She'd fancied him and he'd been a horrible person the whole time through. She felt like a child being told that Christmas wouldn't come anymore, a young teenager going through her first heartbreak and instantly she was reminded of Ron. She felt like she was back in her apartment seeing Ron and Lavender snogging. She felt like she'd been let down. Still pounding, she cried and yelled inexplicably. She did everything she could to make the pain go away.

Finally, she stopped and simply said, "I trusted you…I guess that's what I get for trusting a complete stranger."

All eyes were on her and she didn't like it. She had to get out of there, she had to find Ginny and Luna and leave, leave the country and go to her apartment or Hogwarts or anywhere…anywhere he wouldn't find her. She had to put this all behind her and just forget he ever existed. When they left, she would go back to work and life would return to the way it was before she'd ever met him. She sighed, allowing the wave of emotions to cover her.

"I need to go back to…wherever I was."

The woman in the room looked at her questioningly, "Why?"

"I dropped something and I need to get it."

The woman led her to the basement and Hermione searched for what she had dropped: her wand. Desperately trying to hide what it was she was looking for, Hermione scoured the concrete floor, her mind struggling with how she would grab it and they not realize what it was. She heard footsteps behind her but ignored them and continued looking. She had just found her wand when Chris began to speak in a very quiet whisper, almost as if he did not want her to hear him.

"_I summon the powers  
__to help me cast  
__a spell so she'll forget  
__this night passed._"

Hermione had caught the word 'spell' and went into defense mode; just as Chris finished the _spell_ she grabbed her wand and spun around.

In her head, she cast, "_Protego!_"

The spell rebounded and hit Chris, he hit the wall behind him. He slid to the ground and for a brief moment Hermione was worried he was hurt, but then she remembered what he had done and what he had tried to do to her and lost all pity for him. His apparent mother was looking at her, half shocked and half angry. Smirking, she flailed her hands at Hermione. Hermione flinched, half expecting to blow up, but nothing happened; to which the woman seemed to question. Hermione also was questioning things.

"Who, _the Bloody Hell_, are you people? Death Eaters?"

Just then, white lights surrounded her and she was flown back into a wooden beam behind her. Hitting her head, she made a little, "_Oh_," sound and sunk to the ground, knocked unconscious. Piper turned around to see her eldest standing at the top of the stairs, looking confused.

He asked, "What are Death Eaters?"


	14. the Truth Spell

**Author's Note:** Finally after so many short chapters, we have another long one! And yes! Shame on Chris, he should know better! I'd have to say that Piper really got on him for that one! Lucky for him though, the spell was technically never finished because of Hermione making it rebound so he doesn't have to worry about the consequences of personal gain. I almost panicked when I was editing this chapter, I thought that I'd made the Charmed Ones cast a spell for personal gain! But then, after thinking about it for a bit, I decided that it couldn't be personal gain because they weren't doing it for themselves.

I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Chapter Thirteen:  
**"_t__he Truth Spell_"

Hermione woke the next morning in an unfamiliar bed with a headache that could be murderous. The light coming from the window was more than she could bear and the sound of whispering was like putting a match on her ears. Daringly, she opened her eyes and saw that three women were standing before her. One of them was holding a napkin and when Hermione groaned from the pain, handed it to her. Before she could ask what it was, the woman told her that it was an aspirin. She began to ask how they knew she would be in pain, but then realized that they must have seen her hit her head on the wooden beam the night before. Hermione sat up in the bed and asked for water. Another woman handed it to her. She took the pill and stared at the women in front of her. One woman was the one who had led her to the basement and Hermione assumed she was Chris' mother. The other two, she had never seen before but based off of their cheek bones, she assumed they all were sisters. The three looked at each other, and the one in the middle, Chris' mother, nodded. They then began to chant.

"_For those who want the truth revealed,  
__opened hearts and secrets unsealed.  
__From now until it's now again,  
__after which the memory ends._"

Hermione laughed at the thought of them thinking that a simple chant could bewitch her into telling all her secrets. It was preposterous, you need Veritaserum for that.

The woman in the middle asked, "Who are you?"

Hermione was amazed to feel the same pull as Veritaserum and found herself answering before she could stop it, "Hermione Granger."

"Are you a demon?"

She laughed and said, "No."

"A witch hunter?"

"Merlin's Beard! You must be joking! Why would I hunt witches if I am one?"

Hermione gasped and her hand flew to her mouth to keep herself from saying anymore. This all had to be some sick and strange nightmare. _None of this is happening, I'm still sleeping…at the hotel_, she tried to tell herself in her head but she could not fully convince herself.

The woman on the left asked, "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?"

The one on the right laughed, "Well if that doesn't sound like the _Wizard of Oz_, I don't know what does."

The woman on the left told the other to shut up and repeated herself, "Are you a good witch or a bad witch?"

"I'm a good witch."

The one in the middle abruptly questioned, apparently not happy, "Then why did you attack us?"

"Because you kidnapped me! I should call the Ministry on you people!"

"The Ministry?"

Hermione shrugged nonchalantly, "The Ministry of Magic."

She gasped and covered mouth again, shouting, "Stop it!"

All three asked at once, "What?"

"Stop making me tell the truth about everything!"

The one in the middle sighed, "One last question: Why are you in San Francisco?"

"To forget about Chris and the time we spent together in Venice."

Hermione's face flushed and she could not believe that she had just said that…to them! His family! Surely they would tell him!

"Oh no! Please don't tell him," she pleaded, "Please don't tell _anyone_ about _anything_!"

All three laughed and the one on the left said, "Don't worry. We won't…so long as you don't tell anyone about us."

"Oh, I won't," Hermione promised, and then asked, "Who are you people anyway?"

The woman in the middle said, "I'm Piper Halliwell, Chris' mother."

The woman on the left said, "I'm Phoebe Halliwell, her sister."

And finally, the one on the right, "I'm Paige Matthews, her other sister."

Something then occurred to Hermione, the spell they had recited had said something that sounded as if the spell would last for twenty-four hours and that afterwards, she would not remember any of it. She requested that this be remedied and Phoebe said, "Oh, why not?"

Piper smacked her and said, "Don't! That's personal gain."

Paige laughed and replied, "Not really. We're doing it to help her. It's not personal at all."

"Whatever," Piper sighed, "But if there end up being consequences, I'll have both of your heads!"

Phoebe sighed, walked over to the desk in the room and grabbed a pen and paper, which she began to write on. Then, when she was done, she and her sisters recited another chant.

"_A spell, we cast on you  
__to see if intentions were true.  
__But the spell stipulates  
__your memory will fade.  
__No longer shall this be true  
__and for the twenty-four hours through  
__your words don't have to be true._"

Piper rolled her eyes, smiled and then offered, "Everyone is downstairs eating breakfast; you could have some if you'd like?"

Hermione smiled in return, "That would be lovely."

The three lead her down to the dining room and when they entered, Hermione flushed a little at the sight of Chris. Upon the sight of her, they all stopped eating and stared.

Piper sighed, "She's good. Just visiting," and then she winked at Hermione and motioned for her to have a seat next to Chris. Everyone sighed in relief and continued eating. Hermione sat down and Piper placed some eggs onto a plate for her. Then, the man at the head of the table began to speak.

"Hello. I'm Leo," and then he motioned to everyone that she had not already been introduced to, "This is my oldest son, Wyatt. My son, Chris. And my daughter, Melinda."

When Leo had introduced her to Chris, Chris looked at her and smiled sadly. She could not help but look away, part of her was still furious at him for what he had done.

Leo looked at her expectantly, "And, dear, who are you?"

She tried to smile, "I'm Hermione."

Melinda looked at her with excitement, "What a pretty name. Were you named after the character in Shakespeare's play: _The Winter's Tale_?"

Hermione looked at her with awe, amazed that she had known, "Yes, actually…I was. My mother is a big fan of Shakespeare."

Melinda nearly squealed, "So am I! Oh, we are going to get along wonderfully, I can see it!"

Beside her, Chris rolled his eyes. Hermione laughed and began to eat hesitantly.


	15. Unspoken Apologies

**Author's Note:** I am extremely sorry for how it took me to get this post up! With finals coming up soon at school, my scheldule is getting pretty hectic at school and I am finding less and less time to work on editing the early chapters of this story. But don't worry, this story will be published in its entirety! It just may take me a week or more to post for the next month.

That being said, I'm afraid I forgot to answer a question in the last chapter. Yes, the Charmed Ones will learn of the wizarding world...but that comes much later. And Chris isn't entirely off the hook yet, but we'll come to that in future chapters. For now, let us enjoy this wonderful Chapter Fourteen, wherein you will see a spell of my own creation.

A special shout-out goes to _DeanSamWinchester_ for being the 30th reviewer! Keep the reviews coming!

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Chapter Fourteen:  
**"_Unspoken Apologies_"

Ginny woke in her hotel room to someone knocking on the door and groaned as she glanced at the clock and saw that it was only nine in the morning. Her mind ventured to the thought of Hermione locked out of her room after spending the night in the arms of a warm man. Ginny actually envied her; had Harry been there, he would have had to surrender himself to her. The knock sounded again, and Ginny got up and stomped to the door. Opening it, she saw blonde hair of a shade that only Luna could possess.

Sighing, she questioned, "What is it Luna?"

"Hermione still isn't back yet."

"She's probably sleeping, exhausted from the night's…_festivities_."

Luna flushed a little at what Ginny was insinuating, "But still…this isn't like Hermione and you know it."

Ginny sighed, "Alright…we'll go look for her. Just let me get dressed."

And so the two set off to the rented car and upon reaching the car, stopped. They looked at each other for a moment, before Ginny spoke, "I don't suppose you happen to know how to drive a car, do you?"

Luna looked at her with a look that clearly said: _Of course I don't know how to drive a car! Blimey, have you gone mental?_

Ginny laughed a little, "Maybe we should walk?"

They began walking down the street, taking in the scenery that was San Francisco. They had not gotten far when Luna asked, "How will we know where to find her?"

Ginny simply smiled, pulled out her wand and said, "_Directus Hermione Jean Granger_," and then she slipped her wand up her sleeve so that no muggles would notice. Her wand led them right, then left and straight for a while, then right again. Finally, when they'd been walking for about an hour, the wand turned them onto a street and then onto the pathway leading up to a house. Ginny cancelled the spell and rang the doorbell.

Hermione was still barely eating her food. She was nervous; after all, this family had kidnapped her and now she was eating breakfast with them as if nothing happened. Not to mention, Chris was right beside her and, despite her attraction to him, she found it quite uneasy to be in his presence. He had kidnapped her and then had tried to erase her memory of it! She felt betrayed by him, as if he was no better than Ron was when he cheated on her and when he attacked her. She had to protect herself from men like that.

Suddenly, a door bell ringing caught everyone's attention. Piper smiled and pulled herself to a standing position, saying, "I'll get it."

She went to the door, opened it and spoke to who was calling. Then, she led them into the dining room and Hermione saw Ginny and Luna staring at her. She gasped and dropped her fork on her plate, then flinched at the clatter it made. _Wonderful…more unwanted attention_, Hermione thought to herself as Piper explained, "These girls were looking for Hermione."

Hermione sighed, "How did you find me?"

Ginny smirked, "Oh…it was simple, really. We just needed someone to _direct us_ in the right direction."

Hermione was confused, "Wha--Oh!"

A glance around the table would reveal that the Halliwell's were confused, but Hermione knew that they had to stay that way. Sure, Piper, Phoebe and Paige were witches, but there was no way to be sure that the rest of the family was magical. The room was silent now, as the family was almost waiting for someone to explain. When no one did, Piper cleared her throat and offered Ginny and Luna breakfast.

"Anyway! Would you ladies like some breakfast?"

Hermione groaned when Ginny and Luna accepted. Piper went into the kitchen and then returned with chairs and plates. Now, Piper, Leo, Phoebe, Paige, Wyatt, Chris, Melinda, Ginny, Luna and Hermione were all crammed together at the dining room table. If Hermione hadn't been so annoyed, she might have found it comical. Everyone was hitting someone with something. Most of the conversation made was in apologies. Chris' elbow hit Hermione's arm and he nearly panicked as he said that he was sorry, Hermione simply nodded and continued to try to avoid much contact with him.

During the breakfast, Ginny smirked and said, "Bloody Hell, Hermione! Why didn't you tell us you were leaving with someone? You could have saved us a right bit amount of worry!"

Hermione quickly glanced around the room, noticing that all of the Halliwell family was watching intently, nearly terrified of what she would say. Daring a look towards Chris, she saw how he was staring down at his plate, refusing to acknowledge the existence of anyone at the table. Hermione sighed, knowing they all were afraid she would tell her friends that she'd been kidnapped.

She stammered, "It was…actually, it was a little spur of the moment and…I'm afraid I forgot to let you both know I was leaving…"

The Halliwell family shared a sigh of relief and Hermione pondered if she should have told them about the kidnapping. After all, their excuse had more than enough room for holes. Piper, Phoebe and Paige were witches, and it was very well possible that Chris was as well but she refused to accept it, and they had used their magic to force her to tell the truth. Worse yet, was that they needed no Veritaserum to do so. This could be a family of Death Eaters, using magic that the side of light had yet to learn; using _wand-less_ magic, which terrified Hermione. Those who'd been in the Order of the Phoenix had been a powerful lot, but most could only use wand less magic for the simplest of spells. And a truth spell would be no easy spell, even though in the world of magic that Hermione had been taught there was no spell that would make a person tell the truth; that was the reason for Veritaserum. Attempting to wipe her fears away, Hermione told herself that if these people were Death Eaters they would have recognized who she was immediately and would have attacked her right then. Feeling a little more at ease, she looked at Chris, who was eating solemnly, and wondered if he knew that she knew of the possibility of him being a wizard. She wondered if he knew she was a witch. She certainly hoped not, it could be catastrophic if he did. In that moment, she decided that it was impossible he would know and she planned to keep it that way.

Through all of her thoughts, she had not noticed that everyone had finished their breakfast. She looked down shamefully at her plate and hoped that her lack of appetite had not insulted Piper, should she be on the side of light as well.

"We should probably get going," Luna said, "We have to make sure we are home in time for work."

"Yes, we have a…um…plane to catch," Hermione explained.

Ginny smirked, "We'll definitely have to get together again sometime…I'm sure Hermione and Chris would have quite the reunion."

Hermione glared at Ginny for what she was insinuating, knowing that she'd been the one to lead her to those thoughts, and could not help but blush.

"Yes, I'm sure we would," Chris agreed.

Hermione looked at him, nearly amazed that he had spoken and almost angry that he was encouraging the thoughts that Ginny was having. She looked to her friend and saw that she was just smirking knowingly, and Hermione couldn't help but chuckle…how little she actually knew.

Hermione, Ginny and Luna excused themselves from the table, the entire family following behind. They headed for the door and Ginny and Luna went through. Hermione took one last glance at the family and one last glance at Chris. He had an apologetic air to his face and looked as if he wanted to say something to her, but she did not want to hear anymore about the night's events and merely followed her friends out the door. The sooner this disaster of a vacation was over, the better. The three then headed back to the hotel to grab their things and Apparate home.

Once the door was shut and the girls out of view, Piper wondered aloud, "Do you think she'll tell?"

Phoebe smiled, "She wondered if she should, but decided against it."

And then she looked to her youngest nephew, who was now stomping grumpily to his room, and sighed a knowing and pensive sigh, wondering, _Why must they fight it?_


	16. Of Time and Death

**Author's Note:** I'm dreadfully sorry for how long it has been taking me to post lately, but school ends soon so I promise you'll they'll be getting more frequent. Yes, it will take Hermione quite some time - and quite a bit of wooing - before she'll ever forgive Chris. She's been through quite a bit. And we're definitely progressing into the story some now. In fact, I think - but don't you dare hold me to it because I'm not entirely sure - Chris makes _another_ appearance in Chapter Sixteen. But as I said, I'm not sure...so don't hold me to it! And as far as Hermione not mentioning any type of witchcraft goes, Hermione is a bit in denial about wandless magic. Part of her is intrigued by it and the other part of her is frightened. Also, with Piper...she never saw Hermione's wand because it was dark in the basement and if she saw Hermione make any movement, she just assumed it was Hermione's hand moving Chris back...much in a way the Prue used to do. Hope that clears that up!

Enjoy!

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Chapter Fifteen:  
**"_Of Time and Death_"

Hermione slept with no dreams to disturb or enlighten her sleep. It was a passive sleep, a sleep in which one was near waking but refused to do so. She did not dare open her eyes, for she knew she would wake alone. Sometimes, she secretly wanted to allow Ron back into her life just so that she may sleep in the warm arms of a man, arms that would protect her from any harm. But she knew in her heart that, though she may, on lonely mornings like this, want him back, it would not benefit her at all. He had betrayed her trust with what he did with Lavender and she doubted that she would ever totally forgive him enough to accept his feelings for her. Finally, she opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling for a few moments before she got out of the bed and made herself some coffee. Once she had herself a cup of steaming hot coffee, she sat down at her dining table and stared at the papers in front of her. Though she was still on her one month vacation, she was determined to understand the enigmatic passages. She read through them for the first time since Oak Alley Plantation.

She was about to take a sip of coffee when her mind locked on the second passage. Thrilled that she was so near to figuring out the mystery, she read it again:

_In the path of the sun  
__a never ending orbit  
__The circle stops for no man  
__yet seems stops when there is no  
__man left to live it_

"Of course," she exclaimed out loud, "Time! How could I have been so blind?"

She smugly reread the passage out loud, as if she was trying to prove to some unseen audience her reasoning. Smiling broadly, she looked to the first passage:

_All time halts for those who seek  
__fortunes bitter enemy  
__Lies who haunt but do not speak  
__in grief of secret  
__forever hidden in secrecy_

"And what about you?" She questioned eyeballing the first passage with determination, "What are you for? Greed? No, that would be too easy. What then?"

Suddenly, she gasped and she knew, "Death! Of course! How could I have not seen it before!"

She did not know how it was that she suddenly knew what the enigmas meant, when they were written so vague and nearly incomprehensible, but she knew in her heart that she was right. Adrenaline pumping through her veins, she ran into her bedroom and threw on a white shirt and a pair of jeans. Once she was dressed, she Apparated to the Ministry of Magic, completely forgetting her lovely cup of coffee on the table, and checked in, as you were now required to do. It was protection program that made it so that anyone who was not welcome could not come.

When she signed her name, the witch at the counter questioned, "What are you doing here, Miss Granger? It says here that you are in the middle of a one month vacation."

Hermione merely laughed, "Oh, you know me…married to my work and all."

"Perhaps you should have a love affair?"

"Perhaps…let me know if you find any decent men."

The witch laughed and allowed Hermione to be on her way. Hermione followed her normal route to the Department of Mysteries, passing by familiar faces along the way; one such being Arthur Weasley.

"Alright today, Hermione?"

She smiled, "I'm doing just fine. And yourself?"

"A little tired, but fine all the same. If you don't mind my asking…what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at home?"

Hermione laughed, but rolled her eyes, she really needed to tell the Head Unspeakable what she had found, "Yes…well, I found out something fairly interesting and I need to tell my boss about it."

He nodded, understanding, "I'll let you get to it, then. Take care now, Hermione, and don't be afraid to visit."

"I won't, Mr. Weasley," she said and then, after being scolded and told to call him Arthur, corrected, "Arthur. Say hello to Molly for me?"

He promised that he would and she sped off. She had no time to spend fooling around and sharing small talk. She had finally proved to herself that she had actually been put on a valuable assignment and she couldn't help but want to rush to prove herself worthy to the Head Unspeakable. When she finally made it to the Department of Mysteries, her excitement filled the sector like some kind of kinetic tangibility. She ran through halls, running passed many other Unspeakables. Her light footsteps, padding quickly across the stone floor, were like the furious beats of her heart and when she entered in through the door of the Head Unspeakable's office, she almost felt disappointed that she could no longer experience the rush of anticipation.

"Unspeakable Granger," a voice rang out at her, "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be on vacation."

"Yes, I know," she said, reaching into her purse to retrieve her notes on the passages, "but I've just figured out something about these enigmas that I think you should know."

"Well…it damn well better be good for you to come rushing in here when you aren't even supposed to be thinking about work."

Hermione smiled, anticipation rising in her again, "Oh, it is! I finally figured out what they are about and, as it turns out, we have specific chambers for what each passage is for."

Her boss raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued, "Really? Well, let's hear it, then."

Hermione explained what she now believed the passages represented. The Head Unspeakable listened intently and, when Hermione finished, spoke, "Right…I want you take the one that you think is about Time to the Time Chamber and then, when you're done with that, I want you to better understand this one about Death. It most likely has something to do with the Veil and, if it does, I want to know about it."

Hermione nodded and smiled, then headed towards the Time Chamber to present the Unspeakable in charge there with the information she had discovered. The man seemed greatly appreciative of her discovery and even hugged her quickly when she presented the documents. Afterward, she headed to her office to try to decipher what the enigmatic passage of Death meant and the secrets it held. She sat down, reading the passage. Line by line, she put the passage into easier words.

_All time halts for those who seek (Time stops for people who search for…)  
__fortunes bitter enemy (money? Greed?)  
__Lies who haunt but do not speak (Ghosts who have a secret lie but tell none)  
__in grief of secret (the secret is a painful one)  
__forever hidden in secrecy (The secret will always be a secret)_

Hermione, even after her translations had been written, was still perplexed. Something just did not seem right. Had she been wrong with her translations? She tried again; changing some things, while remaining firm on others.

_All time halts for those who seek (Time stops for people who search for…)  
__fortunes biter enemy (money? Greed? Truth?)  
__Lies who haunt but do not speak (A lie told in the past, but that has yet to be revealed)  
__in grief of secret (The lie is a painful secret)  
__forever hidden in secrecy (The lie/secret will always be a secret)_

She was still confused. Her translations made sense for the passage, and yet they did not seem to fit. What did any of this have to do with the Death Chamber, or the Veil? Then she realized that there must be more to discover and that this would only lead her in that direction. But one thing still troubled her. What exactly did '_All time halts_,' mean? Did it mean that time stopped because the people were dead or that, for some unknown reason, they did not age? Annoyed that it seemed nearly impossible for her to solve the mystery, Hermione took her translations to the Head Unspeakable to inform her of her findings.

"Unspeakable Granger," the Head Unspeakable proclaimed, "What are you doing here? I trust you have some valuable information for me."

Hermione nodded.

"Well, let's see it then."

Hermione handed her boss the paper upon which she had her translations. Her boss read through what she had written, nodding occasionally. Then finally, she looked to Hermione and handed the paper back.

"Right, it's good. I want you to try to find out more."

Hermione nodded once more and began to walk back to her office, but then her boss began to speak again, "Oh…err…Unspeakable Granger?"

"Yes."

"Go home. You've been stressing yourself out lately. Go home and work, if you like, but stay relaxed…I don't need my best worker having a mental relapse."

Reluctantly, Hermione agreed and went home, where she devoured the words of the enigmatic passage inside and out. Finally, she became exhausted and went to bed, where nightmarish dreams plagued her.


	17. Mediterranean Dreams

**Author's Note:** I am terribly sorry for how long it took me to get this post up! I am very busy at the moment and have barely had time to think of anything other than school work! Don't worry, it will all be over soon and I will once again be able to post quickly like I had been doing in the beginning. Anywho, here's Chapter Sixteen. It's rather short but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

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Chapter Sixteen:

"_Mediterranean Dreams_"

Hermione tensed in her dreaming. Haunting images from the past lashed through her dreams at an old wound. Over and over, the death of Sirius Black replayed in her mind. _She was fighting ferociously, dueling with all the magic she held in her veins. Her competitor was masked, but it didn't matter. She didn't care who she was fighting, whose wand could instantly steal her breathe away forever. All that mattered was that her life could easily be over and a huge part of her refused to allow the possibility to exist. A scream pierced her concentration, and the concentration of her competitor, and she took advantage of his distraction and stunned him. Running in the direction of the scream, she saw Harry and Lupin. Lupin was holding Harry and for a brief moment she feared that Harry had been injured. But then she heard his screams and her brain understood what he was saying._

"_Sirius!"_

_Hermione gasped, running to him to console him. But then scene returned to the beginning and she was once again fighting that same competitor and hearing that same scream. She was making the same actions and reactions, experiencing it all numerous, treacherous times…until finally she entered upon a new scene._

_Sirius was standing alone, in front of a Mediterranean style building. He spun in circles, as if searching the distance for an unseen presence. Suddenly, his face widened in fear and he took off in another direction. Through a forest, he ran, glancing back every so often and occasionally tripping over the brush. Ultimately, he fell on the ground and, pulling his hair with his hands, he screamed, "Get me out of here!"_

Hermione awoke abruptly, her entire body shaking with nerves. For a brief moment, she laid in the bed nearly afraid to move. Finally, she calmed enough to go back to sleep and returned to the treacherous dreams.

_Sirius was standing alone, in front of a Mediterranean style building. He spun in circles, as if searching the distance for an unseen presence. Suddenly, his face widened in fear and he took off in another direction. Through a forest, he ran, glancing back every so often and occasionally tripping over the brush. Ultimately, he fell on the ground and, pulling his hair with his hands, screamed, "All time halts for those who seek fortunes bitter enemy. Lies who haunt but do not speak in grief of secret, forever hidden in secrecy."_

_As if the insanity of it all was more than he could take, he finished with, "Get me out of here!"_

Again, she sat up hastily and for a moment she felt as if she would faint. She felt lightheaded and grabbed hold of the bedposts for support. When she recovered from this excursion, she got up from her bed and headed to her dining table, where the passage was. She saw the paper on the top and sighed, placing her fingers gently on it, unconsciously aware that this passage that she worked so hard on deciphering could hold the key to saving the life of Sirius Black.

Overwhelmed, in a hoarse voice she whispered, "Sirius…"

Hours later, she woke to a knock on her door. Groaning, she got up from the table and stretched her stiff limbs. The knock sounded again and she mumbled, "I'm coming…I'm coming."

She opened the door and saw Ron standing at the door, fidgeting in his stance, shifting from one leg to the other and back again. The mere sight pained her heart and for a moment she considered hugging him to take the pain away. The moment, however short lived, infuriated her, for she could not want to reach for him, she could not want to touch him lovingly anymore. He'd broken her heart and a small fraction of her mind would never forgive him.

"Hello, Ronald."

"Errm…Hey, Hermione."

"Is something wrong? Someone hurt?"

He chuckled a bit, "No…but I…errm…"

"You…?"

"I wanted to apologize for what happened…that night, on your birthday. It was totally inappropriate and I shouldn't have done it, drunk or not."

She tried to smile, "Ron, you've already apologized for that…and I've already forgiven you for that."

"I know…but that last one…it wasn't good enough. You deserve so much better than that."

She smiled a little awkwardly, "Well…apology accepted…again."

He stammered, "I…I…I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me for the other thing, too."

"I have forgiven you for that, Ronald," she said, rolling her eyes and knowing what he would say next.

"Could you also find it in your heart to take me back? I promise I will be good to you this time, true to you."

She sighed, "I don't think that is possible."

"Well, thanks for forgiving me, anyway," he said, disheartened, before he left.

Sighing, she headed for her kitchen and began to brew some tea until another knock at the door interrupted her. Opening the door, she was surprised to see Malfoy standing in her doorway, looking positively smug.

"What do you want, Malfoy," she snapped, rather irritated.

"You're still seeing that Weasel prat, then? Not a very smart move, is it?"

"I'm not seeing anyone," she retorted, starting to close the door, "And it's none of your business, anyway."

He smirked, putting his foot in the way of the door, "Well…you know, if you ever felt that your little apartment was now too big and lonely, perhaps…my apartment could be inviting for an evening?"

She shook off the disgusting ideas he was insinuating and replied, rather sharply, "A bit desperate, are we? Going after a _mudblood_ now? I'd rather not."

Apparently, he chose to ignore her first statement, "You don't know what you're missing…"

She kicked his foot out of the way and slammed the door, "I have a vague idea."

Rolling her eyes, she returned to the table and read the passage again. She pondered the purpose and its meaning. Her mind ventured to the possibility of it being about the Veil. She wondered if her dream had meant anything and if it could be connected to the passage. She allowed her mind to think of the possibility of this being the key to bringing Sirius back…but quickly shook her head. Sirius Black was dead and you can't bring someone back from the dead.


	18. Secret Admirer

**Author's Note:** Since it's been a while since I've posted, I've decided to post Chapters Seventeen and Eighteen today, as well. Chapter Seventeen, by the way, is the half-way point for the story. We're getting closer to seeing some more of Chris, too! I hope you enjoy this really short chapter.

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Chapter Seventeen:  
**"_Secret Admirer_"

Some time later, Harry and Ginny had once again gathered everyone together at the Burrow. Most suspected that they had finally decided on a date for their wedding, and Hermione couldn't help but hope for their sake that it was the case; but it was possible that they were gathered to be told that Ginny was indeed pregnant as she had suspected a week or so before. Hermione chuckled, remembering fragments of that night. Though there was little she remembered, she vaguely remembered Ginny admitting that she might be pregnant. She looked to Ginny and Harry; Ginny looked slightly unnerved but for the most part was fairly composed, whereas Harry looked pale like he had just seen a Dementor. They both were fidgeting. She sighed, what sort of drama would occur tonight?

Harry and Ginny now looked like they were arguing, probably over who was to tell the news that they had. Finally, it seemed that Harry won the argument and that Ginny would be the one to tell the news. Hermione took a deep breath, preparing herself for the war zone.

Everyone settled down and gave their attention to the couple in front of them. Ginny attempted to smile and then said, "Hello everyone."

Molly chuckled, "Ginny, dear, no need for formal introductions. We're all family here! So what is that you and Harry have to tell us?"

Ginny squirmed a bit, "Right…uh…I'm pregnant…"

She shrugged her shoulders, attempting to brush off the news and make it seem like it didn't matter much.

Hermione quickly glanced around the room and saw that Ron was looking positively angry. Everyone, it seemed, was keeping their comments to themselves.

Molly appeared to be trying to be supportive, "Alright…so you've postponed the wedding, then?"

Ginny and Harry shared a look for a moment and then Ginny answered, already flinching, "Well…actually, Mum, Harry and I eloped three days ago."

Immediately, Hermione looked to Ron, but did not see him. She did hear, however, the door slam and could easily infer that he was furious and was leaving to calm down…or at least, that's what she hoped he was doing. Next, she looked to Molly and Arthur. Arthur had his head in his hands and was shaking his head slightly. Molly looked like she was about to erupt with her fury, which she in fact did.

"How dare you get married without your family there! What about the big wedding that you've been planning?"

Ginny, now nearly in tears, tried to explain, "Well, Mum, we'll be having another ceremony for family and friends after the baby is born."

Molly was taking deep breaths, attempting to calm herself, "Well, if this is what you want…then, as long as you are happy: I am happy for you."

"But what about Ron?"

Harry wrapped her in his arms, "He'll come 'round. You know how he is: One minute he's a right, foul git and the next, he's the most lovable damn person on this planet."

"Yeah," Hermione agreed, trying to help calm her friend down, "Remember when we we're looking for the Horcruxes? And he left Harry and I? He sure as Hell was being arrogant that night, but then he came to his senses and he came back."

Ginny nodded and Molly went to the kitchen to prepare the meal, Hermione trailing behind to help. Molly reprimanded Hermione and told her to go back into the living room. Hermione refused and, much to Molly's dissatisfaction, ended up helping with dinner anyway. When the meal was finished and consumed, Hermione returned to her home to find roses resting in a vase upon her table. Raising an eyebrow, she went to her table and noticed a note that simply read: _Forgive me_. She was confused, for she did not recognize the handwriting at all.

"Well, how can I forgive you if I do not even know who you are and, therefore, do not know what you have done that requires forgiveness?"


	19. An Unexpected Encounter

**Author's Note:** Well, it certainly has been a while since I have made a post and I'd like to take now to apologize to everyone for that. If you know me, or you've read my stories...you'd know that I normally do not take this long to post. The reason for this is because I usually have the story completely written before I make the first post. _Her Last Mystery_ is only slightly in that respect. While I am still writing the ending - don't worry, I know how it ends! - I've written up to Chapter Twenty Six; which I think is, so far, the longest chapter. About two weeks ago, I had told some readers that I would be making a post the next day but, due to personal reasons, I had been unable to. And due to those same personal reasons, I have found myself unable to make a post until now. But...here it is! After a long wait, I finally present to you: Chapter Eighteen!

A special shout-out goes to: _GeeAnnaB_ for being the 40th reviewer! Congrats and I apologize again for the wait!

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Chapter Eighteen:

"_An Unexpected Encounter_"

The next morning, Hermione woke early so that she would have time to make some breakfast for herself before work. Upon entering her living room, however, she noticed that the roses on the table had now been replaced by a box of chocolates. She got closer to see if there was a note, but was disappointed to see that there was none. Who could this mysterious person - who was suddenly sending her roses and chocolates - be? And _why_ was this person sending her roses and chocolates? Then, realization struck her…it was Ron! Ron was forever begging her forgiveness for every time he'd wronged her. Of course now that she had refused simple apologies, he would resort to much more extreme measures in order to re-win her heart.

A knock on the door caught her attention and she looked up at it quizzically. Tying her robe a little tighter, she walked to the door and opened it to see Ron. She allowed him to come in, saying that he had to make it a quick visit because she really needed to get ready for work.

"Hello, Hermione. I've made a mistake with Ginny, haven't I? How am I going to fix it?"

Ignoring his question, she went on to her own matters, "You're the one whose been sending me things, aren't you?"

"What in the name of Merlin are you talking about?"

Now she was annoyed, why would he not admit it?

"The roses with the note saying, _Forgive Me_! The chocolates! You sent them?"

"No! I don't know what you are talking about. Who's been sending you roses and chocolates?"

She spun around and flung her arms out in frustration, "Ronald! Have you not been listening to me? Are you deaf? I don't know who is sending me roses and chocolates, but I intend to find out."

He shifted his stance nervously, fearing that he was treading in dangerous waters, "Err….right. What should I do about Ginny?"

She sighed and crossed her arms over her chest, "Just give her some space…she's not a little girl anymore. She's a grown woman and if this is how she has chosen to live her life, you'll just have to deal with it…like it or not."

With that, he left to let her get ready for work. Looking at the clock, she groaned to realize that she no longer had the time for breakfast and so she just headed into her bedroom to change into some clothes. She chose a simple white button up shirt and a gray skirt. She slipped on her black shoes and headed to the dining table to grab her work and get ready to leave. But just as she was about to Apparate out, another knock on her door broke her concentration.

"Oh, Ronald, what do you want now?"

She opened the door in a rush and began to reprimand him for interrupting her again, "What do you want this ti-"

She cut herself off when she saw that it was not Ron who was standing at her door. Instead, in Ron's expected place, stood Chris Halliwell.

Her eyes narrowed as she gazed up into the face of the man who had kidnapped her just a week before, "What the bloody Hell do you want?"

Rather than answering her question, as she expected, he simply replied nonchalantly, "Did you get the flowers? And the chocolates?"

She gasped. _What did he say?_

"What?"

He repeated himself exaggeratingly slow, "Did you get the flowers? And the chocolates?"

"That was you? But how…?"

For a brief second, she watched a smirk cross his face, "Magic."

She forced a laughed, feigning disbelief, "Magic doesn't exist."

"Surely, a witch like yourself doesn't believe that nonsense?"

She stammered, _How could he know?_

"I'm not a witch."

He laughed, "Oh relax. My mom told me that you're a witch."

She retorted, "And how would your mother know if I am a witch or not? I'm not even sure I know her."

"You've met Piper, my mother."

Hermione groaned and accidentally said out loud, "I told her not to tell anyone…Damn! I have to learn to stop putting my trust in complete strangers."

He laughed, and she blushed a little at him catching her talking to herself but then reprimanded herself for blushing.

"It's okay, don't be so paranoid. I'm a witch, too."

This interested her, especially his choice of words, "You mean a wizard?"

"No…a witch."

"Whatever," she said, pushing him towards the door.

"Wait," he kept telling her.

"I have to go to work," and she finally got him out of the door. Locking it, she leaned her back against it and could hear him pacing on the other side. She sighed and grabbed her things so that she could go to work. When she Apparated into the Ministry, she checked in and headed to her office. She sat down at her desk and quickly sorted through the papers that had been brought to her office overnight. She did a quiet, little exasperated scream at all the papers she would have to sort through before she began to work on the passage. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her boss walk by the door, shaking her head a little. Hermione sighed, it was going to be a long day. After she had finally finished sorting through the papers and filing them into their appropriate places, she began to look at the passage. It really angered her that she hadn't been able to fully understand it yet. Normally, she could decipher such things within a matter of hours rather than the weeks it had been. To put it simply, she felt as if she was inadequate at her work.

For an hour she worked, or rather sat staring at the paper. This day had been horrible and it was still fairly early. First, Ron being his normal determined self. Then, Chris showing up at her door unexpectedly. Now, she was on her way to proving herself unworthy of her work. Someone cleared their throat and she glanced up and saw her boss standing in the doorway. She quickly scampered her papers together and became very alert.

"Unspeakable Granger, where are you today?"

She stammered, "I'm right here, ma'am."

"I didn't mean physically, Granger; where is your mind wandering?"

"I'm sorry…it's just been a long day, already."

Her boss sighed, "Get back in your game, Granger. You're a valuable asset, I'd hate to have to take you off this assignment, but if your personal life is affecting your work then I may have to. Do I need to put you on Extended Leave of Absence? You are already supposed to be on vacation, but I'm letting you work because you are good. Don't make me change my mind about you."

Hermione quickly glanced up to her boss, "Oh, no! I'll be fine. I swear!"

The Head Unspeakable looked at her solemnly and walked away. Hermione sighed. She had to pull herself together, she couldn't loose this job. She had worked so hard to get an assignment like this and now, all because of Chris Halliwell, she was so close to loosing it. _No_, she thought to herself, _I won't let him interfere with my life anymore!_ He had ruined so much already! Sighing once more, she continued working and searching for some more passages that could help. Hours and hours went by, she skipped lunch and was beginning to get hungry. She glanced at her clock and saw that it was time for her to go home. _Finally!_ She gathered up her things and headed back to the entrance of the Ministry. She checked out and Apparated home.

Once home, she made herself some dinner and sat down on her couch to read a book. Something on the floor caught her attention. She glanced in the direction of her door and saw a piece of paper on the floor in front of it, looking as if it had been slipped under the door. Putting her book down, she went over to the paper and picked it up, noticing that it was folded. She unfolded it and began to read:

_Hermione,  
__I wanted to apologize for everything that happened last week. It was wrong of me to kidnap you. I don't know if you realized, but the man that you met at the bar who flirted with you was me. My older brother, my aunt and I are able to go under glamour and change our appearance to whatever we choose. I used this ability to lure you so that I could take you to my house and hold you there. Perhaps I should explain why I took you in the first place._

_My brother was joking me for sneaking out to meet you in Venice and my family said that I should scry for you, I'm sure you know what that is. I didn't want to at first, but I admit I was a little curious. So I scried for you, but the strange thing was…it couldn't find you. We were worried that you may have been dead. My sister said that I should try to sense for you, another ability my brother, my aunt and I share, so I did. Even with that fail-safe, I couldn't find you - and I'm not even quite sure how I was able to find you this time... I could, however, sense that you were alive. Though we weren't as worried, we were still confused. This time, my brother tried to sense for you but had the same problem. Then, my family began to think that you were some sort of evil being, like a demon or a warlock._

_That's why I kidnapped you. We thought you were evil and wanted to harm us, so I thought that I should take you and make sure. Maybe I should have thought it through more, but I cannot change the past. All I know is that I am succumbing to my guilt and I am almost ashamed to admit that I can't stop thinking about you. I don't know why, but I want to make amends. I want to be friends, and maybe someday be more than that…assuming we ever get that far. I don't know why I feel this way. You're a wonderful person, Hermione Granger, you don't deserve the wrongs that you have received. I'm sorry for what I did to you and that I contributed to your hurt and I really hope that you can at least find it in your heart to forgive me._

_Respectfully,  
__Chris Halliwell_


	20. Redemption

**Author's Note:** Yay! Another chapter! This chapter - I must say - is one of my favorites. I'm not entirely sure why, but I'm extremely proud of this chapter. Hopefully you all will love it to?

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****Chapter Nineteen:  
**"_Redemption_"

The next morning, Hermione was enjoying a day off. Today she had the luxury of sleeping later than she normally would and after the day she had yesterday, she really needed it. After seeing Chris, she had stressed herself out. _It couldn't have been just because of my attraction to him_, she reasoned, _I've also been really stressed at work._ She convinced herself that things would now return to normal and she wouldn't have to worry about Chris Halliwell ever again. And so she slept late, allowing herself to ignore her responsibilities, against her better judgment, in order to pacify her nerves.

She slept dreamlessly, enjoying a relief from her nightmarish dreams of Sirius. Not a sound penetrated the walls of her apartment. Shreds of light shown in through her bedroom curtains, but she refused to wake. She wanted to enjoy the serene tranquility of just laying in bed for hours. At that moment, she had no preconceptions of how she would spend the day, except for that the most of the day would be spent in bed. She thought she would read, or maybe she would go to Diagon Alley and browse through the windows and stores to see if she could find anything worth purchasing.

_Knock, knock._

Hermione groaned; surely there couldn't be anyone at the door? It sounded again. Sighing in her frustration at a quiet morning ruined, she got out of bed and rushed to the door. Donning only a robe with a nightgown underneath, she opened the door and, at the sight of the person on the other side of the doorway, wondered if this day could get anymore ruined.

"Can we talk?"

Hermione exhaled to see Chris Halliwell standing in her doorway wanting to talk to her.

"I guess."

He slowly came into her living room and looked around, obviously judging the appearance of the place. Hermione fidgeted nervously and coughed just to break the silence. He reached into his pocket and, with a shaky hand, pulled out the bracelet that she'd lost in Venice; which she honestly hadn't noticed was missing until she saw it again, dangling carefully from his hand and shining in the light of the morning sun. She began to smile at the gesture, but quickly caught herself. She needn't, shouldn't succumb to warm feelings of Chris Halliwell…her _captor_. Feigning nonchalance, she grabbed her bracelet from his hand, careful not to let their hands touch, and shoved it into the pocket of her robe. As she grabbed it, she couldn't help but notice the warmth radiating from his skin, though she had not touched him, and how, even after pulling her hand away, the warmth still intruded through her skin like a form of unexpected, but not entirely unwelcome, parasitic air.

"Thank you," she quickly murmured, half afraid to breathe.

He sighed, his nervousness branching throughout the room and infecting her, "You're welcome," and then he sighed again, or rather breathed deeply, as if he were composing the best way to approach the desired subject.

Hermione stood silently, taking in awkward breaths, until finally he spoke again, "Did you get my letter?"

For a moment a smile tried to trickle to her lips, but it was quickly forced away, "Yes, I did."

Again, they both succumbed to the silence and Hermione wondered what was the purpose in showing up, unannounced, at her door, wanting to talk…if neither was talking.

"Do you forgive me?"

The question shocked her and she had to think carefully about it for a moment before she answered, "I don't know."

Hermione almost regretted responding with that particular answer, for he seemed a bit put down by her uncertainty, "Do you think that you could at least try?"

"No," Hermione answered bluntly.

He sighed, "Why not?"

Again, she had to think before she answered. For some reason, she couldn't quite come up with a reason as to why she could not forgive him. In her mind, she knew that there must be some logical reason that she could not trust him and should not forgive him, but could not find it in her heart to resist. Finally, she settled for a short and simple, yet partially true answer.

"My trust has to be earned."

This seemed to anger him a bit, "What about in Venice," he said, very clearly and slowly, as if he was trying fully understand what she had said and what he was saying, "when you were pouring your heart out to me? It sure as Hell seemed as if you trusted me then!"

She let out a very exasperated sigh, could he not understand her hesitation? Was he as inconsiderate as he was stupid?

"It doesn't matter anymore," she said, trying to remain calm, "You betrayed my trust when you kidnapped me and…and that's not something I can forgive easily."

Much to her amazement, the voice of his response was shaky, in a manner that almost led her to believe he was near tears, "Give me another chance, then, and I'll make it up to you."

"I don't think I can do that."

"Why not?"

"Because I just can't!"

"I'm begging you, Hermione."

"No."

"Please?"

"But-," she began to say, as her treacherous eyes wandered to his and she saw the pain and the hurt, the grief reflected there, and she momentarily forgot what she had been about to say and her purpose for saying it. In his eyes, she had seen her emotions, but now realized that there'd been another hidden deep inside those dark depths. There'd been guilt and just knowing that emotion existed in his heart almost gave her the courage to forgive him and succumb to his desires. _Almost_.

"But…," he commanded, interrupting her thoughts, "what?"

She took a deep breath and prepared herself for the pain she knew her words would cause her, "But…I've been hurt so many times in my life…and I don't want to get hurt again. I can't take that risk."

In her chest, her heart exploded in its anger at her, continuously calling her a coward and seeking vengeance for the pain she had caused it. It felt as if her heart was burning and crumbling, all at the same time. And she knew that there would be no one to help her, to pick up the pieces and the ashes and gently place them back together. And it pained her that she actually found relief from the sound of his voice when he spoke again.

"What if I promise not to hurt you?"

Despite that her heart was willing to succumb, she listened to her brain, the saviour of logic, and said, "How will I know you're telling the truth?"

"Because I think I love you."

This time, her heart exploded with joy and seemed to feel triumphant, but there was also fear and hurt. The last time she had loved someone and he loved her, it had scarred the both of them. She could not allow that to happen again; besides, it was illogical for him to love her…he barely even knew her.

"No, you don't," she said in a flat, dry voice.

He ventured, "Why not?"

"Because we've only been on one date," she erupted, as if it was the most logical explanation.

"Well, then let me fall in love with you, Hermione," he said, sweet and gentle, "Let me have one chance. Let me prove to you I'm worth the risk."

Hermione stood there, stunned, and, though she might have tried, she could not deny to herself the little drops of salt water trailing down her cheeks. _This_ was not the way she'd intended her day to go.


	21. The Life of Sirius Black

**Au****thor's Note:** Yay! Another chapter! This chapter is special. You want to know why? Because it's posted on my birthday! Anywho, pieces of the plot start to fall into place with this chapter. I'm quite interested to see what your theories about how I'm going to bring this together will be. Let's see...this is Chapter Twenty. We still have to get through Twenty-One through Thiry-Two, and then it's the Epilogue! Can you believe it? We're getting closer and closer to the end!

A special shout-out goes to _crlncyln_ for being the fiftieth reviewer! Congrats! And keep the reviews coming because you know they make my day!

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Chapter Twenty:

"_The Life of Sirius Black_"

Moments later, a loud pop resounded throughout the apartment, causing Hermione to jump. She spun around to see Ginny standing in the middle of her living room looking absolutely panic-stricken. Hermione let out a small gasp at the expression on her face. She heard the door behind her open and she turned just as Chris was leaving. He gave her a brief little nod, complemented with a solemn glance and walked out the door, closing it softly behind him. She sighed, wiped her face and turned to Ginny, who was now pacing…only slightly, with small steps, but enough to be considered pacing. This worried her greatly, as Ginny never paced.

"What is it? What's happened?"

Ginny's arms flew into the air, "It's Harry! His scar, it's hurting!"

"What?"

"His scar is hurting! One minute, we were eating breakfast and the next, he was on the floor writhing in pain!"

Hermione now understood Ginny's panic and empathized with her, "How could this have happened? You don't think…?"

"I don't know what to think anymore."

"We should go…It's not a good idea to leave him by himself for too long."

Agreeing, Ginny said that they should Apparate back. Quickly dashing into her bedroom and grabbing her wand, Hermione Apparated to Harry and Ginny's flat on the other side of town. When she appeared, the curtains were drawn, casting a dim glow to the room. Across the room, in the corner and in the fetal position, lay Harry on the floor. Hermione and Ginny broke into a run and dropped at his side.

"Sirius…," he whispered in a harsh voice, "so much water…so much death."

Ginny cradled him in her arms, rocking back and forth gently and she pushed his hair back from his forehead and lightly stroked his scar. As she attempted to comfort him, she hummed a little and Hermione wasn't sure if it was for her benefit or for Harry's.

"Harry," Hermione cooed, "It's alright, now. You can come back to us, now."

Ginny looked at her and smiled, encouraging her to continue. But it was then that Hermione realized that someone was missing. _Where's Ron_, she wondered to herself before deciding to ask Ginny later.

"Come on, Harry, you're just fine. You're with us, now."

"Sirius," he moaned in broken speech, "Sirius. I'm sorry."

"Harry," Hermione pleaded, trying to remain calm, "Come back to us, please. It's all alright, now."

"Please, Harry," Ginny begged.

"Sirius…so much water…Sirius…death…Sirius!"

He began to writhe terribly again and Hermione and Ginny had to struggle to hold him down. Finally, his moaning slowed and the writhing stopped. Slowly, his emerald eyes fluttered open and he looked up to Hermione as leaned farther back against Ginny.

Hoarsely, he spoke, "It was so real."

Hermione grabbed hold of his hand to give him support. Slowly, and with the help of Ginny and Hermione, he was able to bring himself to his feet. They managed to get him to the couch and sat him in-between the two of them, theirs arms wrapped protectively around him. They sat in silence for many moments, Harry staring off into space at the wall before them. After a while, it seemed that Harry couldn't take the silence anymore.

"Sirius is still alive."

Ginny sighed, "No, Harry, he's not."

"But he is, I know he is. I saw him…he was standing there, right there in front of me! Screaming! Wherever he is, wherever the Veil took him, it's slowly draining the sanity from him!"

"Harry, love," she responded sweetly, "He's not alive. You were just seeing things."

"Seeing things," he repeated, "Seeing things? Was I seeing things when we had to worry about Voldemort? Seeing things…"

"Harry! Think about it," she pleaded, "It's impossible."

Harry got up from the couch, frustrated, "I'm going to lay down for a bit…seeing as nobody believes me."

"I believe you, Harry," Hermione said quietly.

In mid-step, he stopped and turned to face her, "You do?"

"Of course, I do."

Ginny's eyes bared down into her, and Hermione knew that she believed Hermione to be only encouraging Harry in his _delusions_.

"I believe you, because I've seen it; I've dreamt about it."

Ginny scoffed, "You've dreamt about it?"

"Yes, I have. One night, I dreamt about him on an island and he was screaming."

Harry paid her his full attention, "What was he screaming?"

"Get me out of here."

Harry smiled and clapped his hands together, "That's exactly what he was screaming when I saw him!"

Hermione sighed, nearly afraid to go on, "There is this thing that I've been working on at work. It…uh…it's got me thinking that it might be possible to go into the Veil and save Sirius."

Harry looked at her in disbelief, "Are you sure?"

"Somewhat…"

Ginny scoffed again, "I don't believe it."

Harry inquired, "What don't you believe?"

"I don't believe that Sirius can be alive! It's not possible!"

"But it _is_ possible…I know it is," Harry argued.

"But you can't bring someone back from the dead!"

"But he's not dead," Hermione stated as if it were the most obvious explanation, "Sirius Black never died and remains, to this day, a living human being."

"We have to save him," Harry spoke up, cutting off all arguments Ginny might try, "I've seen the horrors that he sees and I will _not_ make my godfather go through that any longer than he has to."

Hermione nodded her head, "I agree, but…"

"But what?"

"I want to learn more about the Veil first, before we go rescue him…to make sure that we don't get hurt while we try to save him."


	22. Stealing Kisses

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Twenty-One! I'm sure you all will enjoy it! Keep the reviews coming!

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Chapter Twenty-One:

"_Stealing Kisses_"

Hours later, daydreaming out of a window that perfectly revealed the versatile afternoon sky, Hermione sat at her dining table, where she was supposed to be trying to be figure out if it was safe to save Sirius, with papers stacked upon papers of notes on the passage of death and the Veil. Unfortunately, and despite the mission she had set herself on that morning, her mind was wandering elsewhere. Chris Halliwell and their encounter that morning, even without the pleasantries of traditional male to female conversation, lingered throughout her mind and pervaded her thoughts whenever she was doing something of importance to her; like working on the task at hand, for example. It was a bit unsettling that whenever she was around the man, he aggravated her to her last nerve but whenever she was alone and allowed time to think, she nearly swooned at the thought of him. Shaking her head of her unwanted thoughts, she continued to work and attack the papers searching for a clue.

Behind her, the clock ticked away the seconds first, and then the minutes, that it took for her to regain her concentration. Smiling triumphantly, she returned to her work, her daydreams no longer plaguing her. Moments passed, and there was a knock at her door. Her heart did a little jump and slight flush came to her cheeks. Though she would never admit it to anyone, perhaps even herself except for that particular moment, she hoped that it was Chris. _Merlin's Beard_, she thought to herself, in a half-reprimanding and half-amused tone, _I'm turning into a timid, little schoolgirl again!_

Getting up from the table, she answered the door to find Ginny standing on the other side. This puzzled Hermione, as Ginny and such pleasantries as knocking and actually using a door usually did not coincide.

"Hey, Ginny," she remarked, "Is everything alright?"

Ginny sighed, granting herself entrance, and, after sitting down on the couch, responded, "We need to talk about some things that were discussed earlier this morning."

Hermione sighed, already expecting and preparing for an argument, "Alright. What did you have in mind to talk about?"

Ginny took a deep breath and Hermione knew that she was also expecting an argument, "Right. Well, I want to know if you actually believe that Sirius is alive. And if so, do you honestly believe that it would be safe to rescue him? Think about it, Hermione. It's illogical and you're usually the one whose married to logic."

The last comment stung Hermione a bit, but she refused to let it show; she just merely answered Ginny's questions with an air of nonchalance, "Yes, I do believe that Sirius is alive but I am still inconclusive as to whether or not it is safe to rescue him."

Ginny exhaled noisily, obviously still not convinced that Sirius was alive but nonetheless agreeing for the sake of their friendship, "Thank you. I'll be heading home now, Harry is still a bit shaken up."

Hermione nodded her understanding, fairly upset over the tension building between the two friends, and Ginny questioned, "Is it alright if I Apparate out?"

"Yes, of course."

With that, and without goodbyes, Ginny Apparated back to her flat to continue comforting Harry. Hermione sighed and attempted to return to her work but as soon as she sat back down at the table, there was another knock at the door.

Cursing whomever it may be, she got back up and answered the door. This time, Chris stood before her, holding a bouquet of white roses - which made her question what his abilities were, as they were her favorites and she had never told him so - and looking absolutely innocent. The sight she saw was so adorable, despite her forced resentment to the notion, that she couldn't help but laugh a little. Upon seeing her smile, he smiled back, no doubt filled with hope that his endeavors would be successful.

After being allowed entrance to her flat, he stated, with obvious open question, "You never said if you forgive me or not…"

"You're right," she agreed, "I didn't."

Handing her the roses, he pleaded, "Will you?"

Fighting her irrational desires, she replied, "I…I don't think that I can."

"Please, Hermione."

"I don't know, Chris," she said, her lips tingling from the way his name sounded coming from them, "I just don't know."

A small smirk crossed his lips, "Do you think I could persuade you?"

"You could try," she responded, quite certain that he would not succeed.

His smirk growing, he approached her carefully. Like loud heartbeats, his footsteps resounded throughout her apartment and when he finally reached her, Hermione was sure that the heartbeats counted by his steps were her own. He stood tall before her and she, barely reaching his shoulders, looked up into his face, taking it all in. His five o'clock shadow fitted perfectly around his perfectly chiseled chin and his eyes sat wonderfully atop their throne of well-formed cheek bones. His eyes, which shown emerald today apart from their usual hazel brown, captivated her so much that her knees threatened to drag her to the floor with their quivering. And he stood there, a smirk still playing upon his lips, wrapped his hand around the back of her neck, his fingers splaying throughout her hair, and leaned down until his lips were paused right before hers.

"May I?"

She started to say no, but her voice failed her. Taking her silence for a yes, his lips continued their journey to hers. For a brief moment, she considered slapping him for his audacity but could not bring herself to do so. And so she surrendered herself to his stolen kiss...


	23. As Readable As a Book

**Author's Note:** Two posts tonight! How are you liking the story so far? I can't wait to see what you think! Anyways, here's Chapter Twenty-Two!

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Chapter Twenty-Two:

"_As Readable As a Book_"

_Sirius was standing alone, in front of a Mediterranean style building. He spun in circles, as if searching the distance for an unseen presence. Suddenly, his face widened in fear and he took off in another direction. Through a forest, he ran, glancing back every so often and occasionally tripping over the brush. Ultimately, he fell on the ground and, pulling his hair with his hands, screamed, "All time haunts for those who seek fortunes bitter enemy. Lies who haunt but do not speak in grief of secret, forever hidden in secrecy."_

_As if the insanity of it all was more than he could take, he finished with, "Get me out of here!"_

Hermione woke from her sleep with a jolt. Putting her hand to her chest, she struggled to catch her breath from the recurring dream. From the first night she'd had that dream, it seemed, it had returned to her each night to wreak havoc upon her nighttime solitude, save for a few nights that were - thankfully - dreamless. Turning around to see the time, she groaned. It was now 12:45 in the morning. _No point in going back to sleep then_, she thought to herself, half-scolding her unconsciousness for causing her to miss fifteen extra minutes of sleep. Her alarm had been set for one in the morning because she and Chris had a date at his club, a date that they arranged a few days before on the day that he kissed her. Due to interferences in scheduling, the only time that both would be free to get together just happened to be when Hermione was sleeping and he was just going to work. And so Hermione had agreed to set her alarm for the wee hours of the morning so that she may be ready by three, when he was due to pick her up, and to accommodate for the eight hour time difference between London and San Francisco. Chris was to pick her up at three and _orb_ them both, whatever that meant, to the club, where it would only be seven in the evening. She had pondered if she should bring out her old Time Turner, get her sleep and then travel back a few hours to right before he would pick her up and then go on the date. But she decided against it. Time travel was dangerous.

Now she stood before her armoire searching for something to wear. Briefly, she considered wearing the red dress she had worn on her first trip to P3, but determined that she should wear something he hadn't already seen her wear. Taking nearly everything out of her armoire, she saw, at the back, a light purple, strapless dress that had a simple, thin white line right under the bust. Glancing quickly through her closet, she saw a pair of white high heels and shrugged her shoulders…it would have to do.

She showered and dressed and, despite her once excited mood, she was now very nervous about this date. What if he were trying to lure her into a trap to hurt her? What if her first instincts that he was a Death Eater were true? What kind of danger was she allowing herself into?

_After all_, she reasoned, _I don't even know him…he doesn't know me._

_But that's the purpose of dating_, another voice inside her head told her, _You get to know one another_.

Quickly, with only thirty minutes to spare, she did her hair and makeup and gulped down the Anti-Sleepiness potion she'd made the night before. Just as she'd finished brushing her teeth and reapplying her lipstick, a knock on the door told her she no longer had time to fret about the date. Whatever was to come, would have to come.

"Hello, Chris. Good morning," she said, opening the door.

He smiled, "Or good evening, depending on your time zone."

She laughed a little, "Yes, well, you are in London, now, and here in London it is three in the morning, so therefore: Good morning."

He just shook his head, "Whatever you say, Miss Great Queen of Logic…Are you ready to go?"

Smiling, she offered her arm and said, "Shall we?"

"We shall," he refused her arm, and instead surrounded his arms around her, "Hold on tight."

Suddenly, she was spinning, weightlessly, and all around him and her was bright white orbs. She felt sick to her stomach and then she realized she'd been through this before. The same night he kidnapped her, he'd used this form of transportation to take her to his house. _So, this is orbing?_ Hermione thought to herself, _I don't like it much._ Finally, her feet touched the ground and she collapsed. Luckily, he was quick to catch her.

Chuckling, he asked, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," she replied, glaring at him and realizing that she was in the same back room that he had lead to her to the night he kidnapped her. "Keep laughing," she warned.

Upon seeing her glare, he merely laughed more.

Smirking, she walked to him and, when she finally was standing right in front of him, she put her hands on his shoulders and stomped down on his foot, careful not to use her heel.

"Ow!" he exclaimed, stepping back from her, "What was that for?"

She laughed, "For laughing."

Shaking his head in amusement, he responded, "Alright, come on."

He took her arm and lead her out to the dance floor, where they began dancing. The music was fairly up-beat and impersonal. For a while they danced around each other, carefully avoiding too much contact. Unexpectedly, the tempo of the music changed. Rather than the fast, up-beat tempo of moments before, it was now slow, romantic even. Everyone on the dance floor adjusted their dance style to fit the mood of the music. Chris and Hermione stopped dancing for a moment and looked at each other, as if pondering if the other wanted to slow-dance. He held out his hand to her and she, after a brief moment of consideration, received it gladly. He pulled her close to him, once again twining his fingers at the base of her neck in her hair, and lightly placed his hand on the side of her hip. Slowly and cautiously, the two began their step into the dance. Chris was looking down on her face with such a look as to be indescribable that Hermione could not help but blush. She returned his gaze by peering up at him through her lashes.

And then, as quickly as it began, the song ended. It was almost saddening, Hermione had quite enjoyed being in his arms but, alas, all good things must come to an end.

Politely, Chris excused himself to the bathroom and Hermione found a table to sit at. So far, the evening had gone pretty good. And then her stomach growled. She made the mental note to request that they order food when he came back. With a smile on her face, she sat alone and did not even notice Phoebe approach her. It wasn't until she spoke that Hermione took note of her presence.

"You love him."

Hermione nearly jumped at the sound of an unexpected voice, "I beg your pardon?"

"You love him," Phoebe said simply.

Hermione laughed, _Is this some sort of joke?_

"No, I don't."

Phoebe looked at her quizzically and then smirked, "Honey, I can read you like a book."

_Is this woman daft to logic?_

"But I don't love him," Hermione explained, "I don't even know him."

Phoebe smiled as if she knew something that neither Chris nor Hermione knew, "To the soul, it doesn't matter. You may have loved him in another life and have just now met up with him again…you never know."

"Well, I _do_ know that I don't love him," Hermione said, and then she blushed a bit, "I just fancy him."

Phoebe's smile broadened, "Keep telling yourself that, but I know the truth. Trust me, I'm an empath…I know what your heart feels."

And then she walked away and left Hermione to her thoughts. Moments later, Chris returned and, sensing something odd about her questioned what was wrong. Assuring him that nothing was wrong, she then requested that they order some food. The whole time they were ordering and waiting and eating their food, Hermione was only half-participating in their conversation. She just could not get the conversation she'd had with Phoebe out of her head. After the food was ordered and consumed, they returned to the dance floor to dance. As soon as they entered the dance floor, the live band playing at the club played a song, a slow song that was about a woman in love with a man that she thought did not love her. The woman was begging and pleading for the man to stay with her, desperately trying to prove her worth. Hermione listened to the lyrics and as she did so, she couldn't help but let a single tear fall from her eye. For whatever reason, Hermione felt as if she were connected to that song, as if it explained her exact situation and how she felt about it. Quickly composing herself so as not to allow Chris to realize that she'd been tearful, Hermione took a deep breath. They pulled away from their embrace and returned to the back room, where he _orbed_ her home. He bid her goodnight, gave her a kiss and returned to his home. She looked at the clock and saw that it was now seven in the morning. Deciding that now was as good a time as any, she returned to her pajamas of the night before and climbed into to bed. She'd been almost asleep when her mind remembered something that had been said to her just hours before.

"_You love him_," Phoebe had said.

Phoebe was right, who was she trying to convince? Perhaps she did love him?

"No, I don't," she repeated to herself, and realized she was lying.


	24. Magic is Might

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Twenty-Three. It's a fairly short chapter, but I'm sure you'll still enjoy it! ALSO, I have a new poll on my profile. I'd appreciate if you'd participate. It'll help me decide what to write next!

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Chapter Twenty-Three:  
**"_Magic is Might_"

Hours later, in the early afternoon, Hermione awoke, for what felt like the millionth time in her lifetime, to a knock at her front door. Grumbling quite a few inappropriate words, Hermione got out of her bed, quickly gussied herself up and answered the door to find Chris looking positively nervous. She let him in, shut the door and was about to ask what was wrong, when he shook his head.

He was holding onto her arms, as if for support, when he finally spoke, "I wanted to tell you last night…but…but I was afraid of your reaction. So…I'm telling you now and taking a big risk: I love you."

She stared up at him for a moment, as if she were trying to fully understand, as if she didn't quite comprehend what he had said. And then he leaned down to kiss her, and, with a blast of little white orbs, was gone. Hermione stood alone in her living room, nearly panicking because all rationality and logic said that they couldn't be in love with each other and it frightened her to be loosing her heart to a man again. She could not endure much more pain.

Realization and fear struck her then. She knew he was magical, but had no idea how his magic worked. He needed no wand for his method of transportation, and even his method of transportation itself was a mystery to her. She could be putting her family, her friends, anyone and everyone that knew her at risk just because of the mere fact that she was attracted to this mysterious man. Raged filled through her. He could have told her how his magic worked, but he didn't! He _should_ have told her! And then her rage focused on herself: She could have, _should have_ asked.

"That's it," she proclaimed to the barren walls surrounding her, "I want answers and, damn it, I am going to get them."

She ran into her bedroom and threw on some clothes, not really paying attention to what she had chosen. She grabbed her wand and spun on the spot, Apparating to the same dark alley that her, Ginny and Luna had Apparated to just a few weeks prior. She began walking, trying to remember how to get to his house from the alley. But to no avail. Finally, when she realized that she was helplessly lost, she cast a spell.

"_Directimene the Halliwell Home_," she said and immediately felt the tug of her wand. She followed it graciously, through city streets and then streets in more residential areas. She walked at a great pace, keeping sure that her wand was not in the sight of muggles. Finally, she reached the familiar manor and knocked on the door. Hermione stood and waited, tapping her foot. When no one answered, she rang the doorbell. In a few moments, the same young girl that had been introduced to Hermione as Melinda opened the door.

"Can I help you?"

Hermione smiled sweetly, "Is Chris here?"

"No, I'm afraid he isn't," Melinda replied, letting her into the house, "He's a little…um, _busy_ at the moment."

And Melinda looked to Hermione and stated, quite simply, "You're that witch he's falling for."

Hermione was taken aback slightly by such a simple statement, especially the fact that this girl seemed to know that she was a witch. _Does this entire family know I'm a witch?_ She wondered.

"I'm not a witch," Hermione replied.

Melinda smiled, "Oh, relax…all of the Halliwells are witches."

This family puzzled Hermione, "Are you always this open about your magic?"

"Only to other good witches."

Hermione thought for a moment, she'd been looking for Chris in order to learn more about his magic but he was not here and she'd hate to waste a trip into another time zone. Perhaps she should see if his sister could tell her what she needed to know?

"Erm…Melinda? It is Melinda, isn't it? Do you think that you could tell me a bit about your magic?"

Melinda raised her eyebrow, "What about our magic?"

"Well, you see, I don't exactly know how your magic works or how you use it."

Melinda bit her lip, obviously pondering something for a moment. Hermione waited patiently for her to say something, until finally she spoke.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you anything…"

Hermione was a bit disappointed but had expected it, "Alright, I understand."

And she began to make her leave; that is, until Melinda stopped her.

"No! You didn't let me finish," she explained, "I can't really tell you anything because I'm not allowed to practice…not yet, anyway. Mom says I'm too young. But because I can't practice, I don't really know much. However, I know something that can give you all the information you need or may want. Follow me."

She took off in the direction of the stairs, leaving Hermione still standing, now alone, in the entrance hall of the house. When she didn't immediately follow after her, Melinda turned to Hermione and ordered, "Come on!" Slightly confused, Hermione followed her up the flight off stairs to the second floor and then up another to what seemed to be the attic. Hermione was even more confused. _What, in the name of Merlin, could possibly be up here and be able to tell me what I need to know?_ She wondered. She looked around, searching for this so-called information-giver and she noticed a pedestal on which a big green, leather book sat. Melinda lead her to this book, saying that everything about her magic was in there.

"Touch it," she requested, looking anxious and expectant. Hermione would later learn that this was because if the book let her touch it then it meant she was good. "Open it. All you have to do is read it."

Cautiously, and nearly afraid that the minute her skin made contact with the ancient book it would burst into flames, Hermione touched it.

And nothing happened. Both Melinda and Hermione sighed. She gazed down at the book, admiring the red triquetra on the cover, a symbol of unity. Melinda picked up the book and carried it over to a small Victorian-style sofa, that Hermione hadn't noticed before, and set it down on one of the cushions. She said that Hermione would be more comfortable reading on a couch, rather than standing at the pedestal. Hermione walked over to the couch and sat down, opening the book to the first page.

"_The Book of Shadows, established 1693_," Hermione recited from the first page.

Melinda smirked and, as she was leaving the attic, said, "Read up."


	25. The Demon of Despair

**Author's Note:** I have a rather short chapter for you all today. I may have another post tonight, if all goes well. Don't forget to participate in my poll on my profile. Right now, the stories are tied and, as I am almost finished writing _Her Last Mystery_, I need help deciding which idea to go with next.

A special shout out goes to _GeeAnnaB_ for being the sixtieth review-er! Congrats!

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Chapter Twenty-Four:

"_The Demon of Despair_"

Not so long later, Hermione sat on the sofa, still reading _The Book of Shadows_. She was now reading a particular entry about a demon who, quite frankly, frightened her. He was a demon that she hoped she'd never have to encounter, as he seemed to be quite worse than Lord Voldemort himself!

"_Belthazor_," Hermione recited, "_Beware of this Demonic Soldier of Fortune. Both powerful and dangerous, he has destroyed countless witches, innocents, and demons. As sinister as he is intelligent, he is not be trusted. Belthazor's known abilities include throwing energy balls and shimmering from place to place, but his powers are probably not limited to these capabilities. Because there is no known way to defeat him, Belthazor should be avoided at all costs._"

"Belthazor," she repeated, "Both sinister and intelligent…Merlin's beard."

She shuddered a bit from fear of him, and then she heard the footsteps. Hermione nearly jumped out of her skin. Finally gaining her composure, she looked up in just enough time to see Piper, Phoebe, Paige, Wyatt and Melinda come through the attic door.

"What exactly did the demon look like?" Piper asked frantically, as she had been opening the door.

Wyatt, it seemed, had been about to say something when they all noticed Hermione sitting on the sofa with the big, leather book in her hands. They all stared at her in shock and horror, except Melinda, who was staring at her family as if trying to figure out how they would react to the sight before them. Hermione couldn't understand; had Melinda not lead her up here and given her permission to read the book? What was so wrong about her reading a book? Finally, Piper spoke…or rather, shouted.

"What the _Hell_ are you doing?"

Phoebe then turned to Melinda, who was now creeping silently out of the room, and then pointed to Hermione and yelled, "Explain! Now!"

Shaking slightly, and looking towards Melinda as if she were seeking a form of support, Hermione replied, "I wanted to know how your magic worked and she - Melinda - lead me here and told me to read this book. I'm sorry for any trouble I've caused…I'll show myself to the door."

Piper shouted, "Phoebe!"

For a brief moment, they shared a look that lead Hermione to believe they could use telepathy to communicate in their minds. Phoebe briefly looked to Hermione with an inquisitive look on her face, then she smiled.

"She's good," she apparently determined.

Paige looked at her curiously, "So, what were you reading about?"

Hermione glanced back at the book, still open to the page on Belthazor, "I was reading about this demon, named _Belthazor_. I'd really hate to run into him, he seems very dangerous."

"You don't have to worry about him…he's dead," Phoebe said, solemnly looking at the floor.

Wyatt appeared very angry and impatient, "I don't mean to interrupt this study session…but we've got a brother to save!"

Hermione spun her head to face him so quick she wondered why she didn't get whiplash, "What?"

"Chris and I were fighting a demon that neither of us had ever seen before," he explained, "to save an innocent, but he got hurt real bad and then the demon took him."

"And now we need the _Book_ back so that Piper, Phoebe, Wyatt and I can find him," Paige added.

With that Piper grabbed the book and placed it back on the pedestal. The family crowded around the book and began flipping feverously through the pages, pausing a few times on various pages only for Wyatt to shake his head and they have to start over. For what seemed like hours, though Hermione was convinced it actually wasn't, they searched. All the while, Hermione paced the attic, the floor rushing beneath her feet so fast, she scarcely had time to notice the occasional loose floorboard. Numerous times, Piper told her to stop because it was making it was making her more nervous than she already was and numerous times she would stop for a few moments and then would start back up again. Finally, Wyatt told his mother and aunts to stop.

"Stop! That's him!"

They all read the entry in the book and then Piper clapped her hands together, "Well…it's no worse than anything we've ever fought before."

Hermione looked to them all and nearly pushed her way to the _Book_ so that she could read it as well. What she saw, unnerved her greatly. The page was titled "_Deces_," and held a picture of a creature robed in black and portraying death and decay. The mere sight of the creature chilled Hermione to the bone.

**Deces  
**_Perhaps the most dangerous of all demons, Deces feeds off of the despair of witches and mortals alike. From their pain and fear, reciprocates his strength. He often targets people who are emotionally optimistic or in love, as their euphoria weakens him and he wishes for such feelings to be nonexistent._

_Deces is sometimes called the Demon of Despair. It is unknown where or how he originated, though it is understood that he possibly crossed the Atlantic to the New World from Great Britain during the time of the American Revolution._

_Because many witches before have fought him and failed, it is recommended that he is avoided. None yet have discovered a way to defeat him._

Hermione gasped, her fingers gripping the edge of the book so hard her knuckles were turning white. _No, it can't be!_


	26. The Dementor's Kiss

**Author's Note:** Here's Chapter Twenty-Five! I hope you enjoy it!

Also, I'd like to remind everyone that I have NEW poll on my profile so go check it out if you haven't already! Right now, "Know Thy Enemy" is winning! I can't wait to see what you all think I should write next!

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Chapter Twenty-Five:  
**"_The Dementor's Kiss_"

"What? You've never seen a demon before?"

Hermione heard Paige speak the words, but they wouldn't register in her brain. She'd read the words and seen the picture but her mind refused to believe it. There was no way it was possible. Surely the words written on the page were lying and the picture was just some cruel, farce joke? Finally, her jaw unlocked and she was able to speak.

"No…but I know a way to fight this…_Deces_…off."

Piper smirked and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Yeah, so do I: One kick ass potion."

"No," Hermione said, shaking her head, "It's actually a spell; the Patronus Charm. It's a very complicated spell. You speak, very clearly, the words _Expecto Patronum_."

"Well…I'd like to know how two words can defeat him," scoffed Phoebe, "when no witch has been able to do so before."

Hermione sighed. Their ignorance of her magic was causing an arrogance in them, they were overly confident in their magic. Sighing once more, Hermione stated calmly, "The spell isn't to defeat him. It will fight him off long enough for you to save Chris. There's no way to defeat him…at least, not that I know of. I don't know. There could be, but I've never heard of it. If there is a way to defeat him, once and for all, I don't know how."

_And I was top of my class in Hogwarts, so there probably isn't a way_, Hermione thought, knowing that she sounded positively conceited.

Piper made a little "hmmpf" sound and said, "Well…we're going to find out how."

They all then began to work, filing into an unspoken routine that Hermione almost found fascinating. Piper began brewing a potion and Phoebe started to write a spell. Hermione was interested to see how this potion was going to work if the _demon_ was not going to ingest it, as she had already been told he wouldn't. She had been told that the potion would be thrown at the feet of the _demon_ and that after that they would recite the spell, which seemed, to Hermione, to be nothing more than a poem. Then, Hermione, Piper, Phoebe, and Paige prepared to leave.

"Mom! Please! Can I go? I can help, I know I can," Melinda had said when Piper started to gather everything together.

"No," her mother answered simply.

"But Mom! He's my brother! I have to go, I need to know what's happening!"

"You will know…when we get home," Piper retaliated, and then when Melinda began to argue, cut her daughter off, "And you're my daughter. You are not yet an adult, you are too young to be going off and fighting demons. It's too dangerous."

"But," Melinda shouted, now pointing towards Hermione, "You're letting her go!"

Piper flung her arms out in resignation, "Melinda Prudence Halliwell! You will listen to me! This is _dangerous_! So dangerous that I don't want you or Wyatt going! No witch has ever fought this demon and lived, do you understand that? Hermione is going by her own free will! I couldn't convince her not to go even if I wanted to!"

Piper sighed exasperatedly, "You will listen to me…and you will stay home. Please, Melinda."

"Fine," Melinda concluded, obviously annoyed. Piper placed a hand on each side of her daughter's face, clearly worried that this was her last chance to do so.

"I love you, sweetheart," she said sweetly before turning to Wyatt, "You'll watch her, won't you?"

He nodded and she smiled, "Good, that's my boy. We'll be back as soon as we can. Tell your father not to wait up for us."

"I will Mom," Wyatt said simply.

Hermione cleared her throat, sounding a bit more anxious than she had wanted, "Are we ready?"

"Let's do this," Paige said, and everyone that was going grabbed one of her hands. Except for Hermione, who didn't quite understand.

"Come on," Phoebe ordered pleasantly, "Grab my hand. We've got to go."

Hermione grabbed Phoebe's hand and a second later disappeared in the familiar bright white lights, feeling like she didn't weigh anything until, finally, her feet touched solid ground. Upon the sudden jolt, Hermione swayed a bit, having to lean on Phoebe for a few seconds until she regained her composure.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Phoebe said, chuckling slightly, "I forgot to ask if you've ever orbed before. Have you?"

_Oh, yes!_ Hermione thought, _I've definitely done _that_ one too many times!_

"I have," she finally answered, after a few moments silence, "But that doesn't mean that I like it."

Piper laughed, "Trust me…if you get involved with this family, you'll get used to it."

Piper and her sisters shared a look that almost made Hermione wonder if they knew something that she didn't. And then Hermione looked around to see where they were at. She saw that they appeared to be in a forest and wondered if they were far up north because of the chill in the air. She saw a cave and, without really knowing how she knew, she knew that that was where Chris was. Maybe it would be easy to find him, caves weren't that big…were they? Finally, the sisters seemed to be done with their silent, private conversation and were now walking up to the entrance. Hermione followed behind them, each step confusing her.

_Is it getting colder?_ she wondered as they were walking through the cave entrance. They had to bend down a bit at first because of the hanging stalactite and cobwebs, the light from outside providing just enough light for them to see. After a few feet of walking like this, they came to an opening that appeared to be the end of the cave. _This is it?_ Hermione asked her consciousness, _This can't be it! Where is he?_

Piper sighed and brought out a flashlight, shining the light into the secretive darkness, and whispered, "Wyatt said that there would be a hole that we'd have to crawl through that will take us to some catacombs and that Chris is in there somewhere. Shout if you see anything."

"Catacombs?" Hermione mumbled to herself, her eyes peeling through the blackness, looking for some sign of a hole.

They stood for a few moments in silence, their eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets from all the straining. Piper continuously waved the light slowly around the round opening, over every inch of wall and floor and ceiling. The light splayed out over solid ground, rocky walls and a hole, slightly covered up by weeds. _A hole!_ Hermione shouted excitedly in her mind.

But just as she went to voice that she'd found the hole that they were looking for, Paige chimed in, pointing towards the hole, "I found it!"

She grabbed the flashlight from Piper's hand and shined the light over the hole, cautiously walking up to it. She brushed away the weeds, tossed Phoebe the flashlight and began to crawl through the hole.

"Paige," Piper exclaimed, "What the Hell are you doing?"

Paige pulled herself out of the hole so that Piper could see her face, "I'm saving my nephew. I didn't realize that it was such a problem."

Piper shouted, "But you can't freeze something or blow something up if you need to!"

Paige glared at her, "Well…no, I can't. But I can orb myself out if something should attack me."

Piper sighed and waved her arm, allowing Paige to continue. Once Paige had gone through, Piper went, then Phoebe and then Hermione. Taking her wand out, Hermione looked around and felt like she was in an old mausoleum. There were torches on every wall and the floor was made from marble. Each step they took echoed off the floor and resounded again in some deeper part of the catacombs. They continued to walk through the labyrinth, wandering aimlessly about in hopes of finding Chris and vanquishing the demon. As they walked, they became less and less sure that they would find Chris and more sure that he was dead and that there was no hope in finding him or the demon. Paige had even said a few times, "We're not going to find him. We're not going to find him…" _We might as well give up_, Hermione thought to herself, feeling as if all the hope was being sucked from her and all that was left was a shell of who she was before she met Chris and his family.

Finally, _Deces_ appeared around a corner and began to come after them, floating weightlessly across the floor with a decayed flesh hand extended towards them. Piper grabbed out the potion bottle and threw it at the feet of the demon, who stopped as if puzzled by this gesture.

Gathering together, the Halliwell sisters stood side by side, Phoebe in the middle holding the paper with the spell on it, and began to recite the spell.

"_Demon of Despair  
__we vanquish thee  
__Feel the wrath of  
__the Power of Three_

_Will of magic  
__Power of spell  
__We witches condemn  
__you back to Hell_!"

A great cloud of smoke erupted from the potion on the floor and filled the room, but, though the sisters seemed to think that it worked, Hermione knew that the potion and spell had not been powerful enough to defeat him and, to her horror, when the smoke cleared she discovered that it had not even been powerful enough to fight him off, to scare him away.

Gasping slightly, she pulled out her wand and shouted, "_Expecto Patronum_!"

Hermione's Patronus erupted from the tip of her wand and the little otter charged at the Dementor. Upon sensing the beacon of light, the beacon of hope the demented being fled back down the catacombs in the opposite direction. The little otter sped off down another corridor and then left, then right, then left again. They followed the silver being until they came to a small chamber filled with numerous decaying bodies, where the otter disappeared. The smell was unbearable and the darkness penetrated their eyes. Before Piper could get out the flashlight and cut it on, Hermione had lit her wand and was now peering around in the infinite darkness for a sign of life, knowing that her otter had lead them to Chris' location.

For a few moments, the sisters and Hermione stared in silence just waiting for something to move or acknowledge their presence. Hermione took a breath and, ignoring the horrid stench of death and decay that seemed to plague her and was being absorbed in her clothing so that she may have to face the stench once again when they were out of the catacombs, stepped into the room. She stepped over many bodies, all rotted and decayed with nothing left to identify them as bodies but their tattered clothing and bones. Tripping slightly, she pointed her wand in nearly every direction possible and sought desperately for Chris, knowing full and well that he could already be dead. She tripped again and fell upon one of the bodies and screamed. She looked down at the body and gasped to realize that it was Chris she'd fallen on.

"Chris! I found him!" she yelled to his family.

In horror, she gazed at his pale and lifeless form. Hesitating, for she was sure she already knew what the results would be, she placed her fingers aside his neck, noticing how freezing his skin was to the touch, and checked for a pulse. She was amazed to discover that he had a very slight, very slow pulse. Her mind reeled with possibilities until her mind registered what had happened.

"Oh, Merlin," she whispered slowly, "the Dementor's Kiss!"


	27. the Solution

**Author's Note:** Well, I had promised myself I would not post this until I had completed writing Chapter Thirty but I just couldn't resist it! So here it is! I have decided that I will dedicate this chapter to _marbleandtoast_ because this member was the only one to figure out the creature Chris had been attacked by! Congrats! I'd also like to mention, for anyone who actually reads these weird rants at the start of each post, that I am truly honored by how much feedback this story is getting. So far, _Her Last Mystery_ has received a total of **11,512** hits! Thank you all so much! You're the best!

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Chapter Twenty-Six:

"_the Solution_"

The attic was getting too _bloody_ crowded for Hermione's already troubled nerves. In the attic of the Halliwell Manor was Leo, Piper, Phoebe, Paige, Melinda, Wyatt, and Chris, still unconscious on the couch. And that was excluding Hermione herself, who was now pacing fiercely across the wooden floor. It amazed her that such a large room could become so crowded with only eight people. _Oh, that's right…Eight _bloody_ people in one_ bloody_ room_, she yelled to herself, _of course it's going to be_ bloody_ crowded!_ Hermione continued her pacing, glancing every so often at the vulnerable form of Chris, which rested peacefully upon the old Victorian couch. She couldn't believe it, she _absolutely_ couldn't believe it. How could this have happened?

"You! You know what's wrong with my son!" Piper screamed, pointing an accusing finger at her, "You knew how to fight that demon, that _thing_ off and you know what is wrong with my son! _Why_ won't you fix him?"

Hermione stopped her pacing and sighed - heavily, "I would if I could. He's had the Dementor's Kiss and there is no way to reverse it…"

Her words hung dead in the air, a parasitic force draining them of all hope. Piper stared at her in horror, "So…he's dead?"

"No, not dead," said Hermione, trying smile sweetly and talk gently but with great failure, " A Dementor's Kiss doesn't kill you. It's when…when a Dementor, that creature we fought, sucks out your soul. You're still alive but your body is lifeless, soulless…they say it's one of the worst things that can happen to you."

Hermione shut her eyes but she couldn't shut out the sound of Piper's frantic scream, or the sound of her falling to her knees and sobbing mercilessly. Piper sighed, fighting back her own tears and horror. Finally, Hermione chanced it and opened her eyes. Piper was now laying on the wooden floor in the fetal position and banging angry, desperate fists on the floor as if she had no other way to take out her frustrations. Everyone else in the room could only stare at her in silence, unsure of what to do, how to help.

Hermione couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to scream and cry and be on the floor pounding her fists, just as Piper was. She wanted to crawl into the darkest corner of the darkest room and never come out. She wanted to cease to exist, she wanted to forget Chris and the Dementor's Kiss. She didn't want the pain anymore. Sighing a deep and heavy sigh, Hermione rushed out of the attic before any could see her tears and slammed the door. She Apparated to her lonely apartment and collapsed on the couch, stifling a scream into a pillow. Reaching for her wand, she placed a silencing charm on the apartment and screamed again, this time allowing the sound waves to reverberate throughout the barren walls.

Grudgingly, she stared at her wand. _Magic_. If it wasn't for magic, she wouldn't be in this pain. If she had never been a witch, she would have never met Ron and he never would have hurt her. And if she had never met Ron, she would have never met Harry and they would have never risked their lives and if _that_ had never happened she would not have been so excited about her birthday and so determined to make it worth remembering. And then she would have never gone to Venice and met Chris. Magic, her own special uniqueness that she had once been so proud of, had now been the cause of so much pain that she now wasn't entirely sure she wanted to be a witch anymore. With another scream, she threw the wand at the wall and, upon impact, red sparks flew from the tip.

"Damn it!" she screamed at anything and everything. Why did she have to have the worst luck? She had just begun to warm up to the idea of dating Chris and the Gods dared to snatch him from her? She had assisted Harry through it all with Voldemort and this was the thanks she got? The most horrible luck with romance?

Breaking into a heart-wrenching sob, she collapsed upon the couch and curled into a little ball. She rocked herself back and forth, feeling very vulnerable and helpless. A couple of times, she screamed in outrage. And then, finally, she fell into a very troubled sleep. She dreamed, over and over again, of a deep pit that seemed to go on forever. In this dream, Chris and Hermione were standing on the edge, embracing and completely oblivious to the inevitable doom they faced. And then, the ground would suddenly fall from under them and either Chris or Hermione was pummeled into the dark pit and killed. The last time that Hermione fell, she was alarmed at the feeling of fingers brushing across her cheek and what could only be Ginny's voice cooing in her ear…

"Hermione, love," she said to her. "Wake up. It's just a dream."

Through sleepy eyelashes, Hermione peered up at Ginny and shook her head, crying out, "No! It's not a dream! He's as good as dead."

Puzzled, Ginny questioned, "Dead? Who's dead?"

"Chris! He's had the Dementor's Kiss and he's gone; there is no way to save him now," sobbed Hermione, her voice filled with distraught.

"But I thought that you didn't care for him; found him annoying, even?"

"It's just that," Hermione shouted, flinging her arms out in desperation, "I don't know how I feel about him. I want to hate him, I really do…but some stubborn part of me wants to see him all the time and I just…I just don't know how to respond to this!"

Sighing, Ginny apparently came to a conclusion, "Maybe there _is_ a way."

"What?"

"Get up. Let's go," Ginny ordered, grabbing hold of Hermione's wrist.

"_Ginny_! Go where?"

"Well, St. Mungo's, of course," she replied, as if it couldn't have been more obvious.

Hermione defensively snatched her arm back towards her body and dropped back down on the couch, "Forget it, Ginny! It's hopeless. There is nothing that anyone can do."

"You're right. It _is_ hopeless," Ginny said with resignation, "It's hopeless simply because you believe it to be so, because you've given up."

"Well, what is there to do? It's better than believing in a false hope."

"Oh, you're not listening to me!" Ginny shouted, spinning away from her and throwing her hands to her temples in exasperation, "How can you be sure you're hope is false? Because you're beloved books say so? Well, _I_ say to Hell with those bloody books! Talk to someone! You're books can be outdated! They can be wrong! It _is_ possible for books to be wrong, Hermione! But people…Healers at St. Mungo's, they will know. And then, _if_ and _when_ I am wrong I will gladly accept your smug and know-it-all 'I told you so' but would you please just give it a chance?"

Instead of a verbal argument, or even a response, Hermione just shook her head. Ginny sighed and joined her friend on the couch, wrapping protective arms around her. Hermione had received a lot of pain throughout the years - most, if not all, of which was undeserved, unjust. Ginny could think of no logical explanation and knew that Hermione could not either. Illogical turbulence, undoubtedly, frightened them both. And perhaps it is due to how illogical Hermione's life was playing out to be, that she decided there could be no harm in continuing along the illogical path. And so, she finally agreed.

"Alright," she said softly, almost as if her own voice was shocked at her illogical actions.

* * *

Hermione found herself waiting in a cold chair in the lobby of St. Mungo's. The room was lifeless and harsh on her anxiety, seeming to pray on her despair in a way much like a Dementor's. Ginny was staring at the floor directory, trying to decide which floor to try. Every time she seemed to make a decision, she would just shake her head and return to the guide and study it with a stern gaze again. At her wits end, Hermione sighed, got up from her seat - which was instantly taken by a poor man with horrifying boils bubbling all over his skin - and began to study the guide as well. But just as she had begun to read the list, Ginny grabbed her by the arm and lead her down a hallway, up a flight of stairs and down another corridor labeled with something that Hermione didn't have time to read.

Still holding onto Hermione's arm, Ginny bolted down the hallway and, after regaining her balance and mumbling a few choice words, Hermione saw a Healer leaning against the wall studying charts.

"Excuse me," Ginny asked the man, "Are you too terribly busy to help us out?"

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Well, no, but this is urgent! You see, my friend, her… Well, her boyfriend…he was attacked by a Dementor and he…he's had the Dementor's Kiss done on him."

Hermione had tried to speak up and say that he was not her boyfriend - after all, they had only been on a few dates - but the Healer, raising an eyebrow, cut her off, "Not to be blasé, but what do you want me to do about it?"

Hermione, turning an eye towards Ginny, spoke up, "_She_ seems to believe that it is possible to save his soul. I, however, disagree."

"Hmm…' the Healer replied, "Come with me to my office."

He lead them down a small, narrow corridor and through a door that flanked the side. Once the door shut behind them, he cast a silencing spell on the room and took the seat behind the desk. Hermione and Ginny took the seats sitting in front of the desk.

The Healer looked at Hermione and abruptly asked, "How long has it been since he was attacked?"

"Only a few hours," Hermione replied, feeling rather dumb. Did they - Hermione and Ginny - honestly expect anything good to come from this? There could not possibly be a way to save Chris now. She might as well move on from her petty emotions.

"Then there is still time."

Hermione was both perplexed and shocked, "Excuse me?"

"We can save him," the Healer explained slowly, "_if_ you are able to capture the Dementor who took his soul; so that the soul may be extracted from him and replaced back into your boyfriend."

* * *

Through side-along Apparation, Hermione and Ginny appeared in the attic of the Manor. It was quiet. The entire family was as she left them except for Piper, who was now huddled in a ball on her husband's lap, crying on his shoulder. Upon hearing the loud pop that followed an Apparition, she looked up and saw Hermione, who couldn't help but notice the little scowl that crossed her face.

"What do you want?"

Hermione tried to smile sweetly, "We…we know a way to save Chris."

Piper popped up and ran to stand before Hermione and, placing her hands on Hermione's shoulders, demanded, "You do? You really do? Oh, how? What spell? What do we have to do?"

Piper shook her lightly. She was a desperate, worried mother who wanted nothing more than to save her son, no matter what the cost. Hermione admired her for the love she held for her son. Gently placing her hands on Piper's shoulders, Hermione gave a comforting squeeze.

"We have to find the Dementor that took his soul and capture him so the Healers at St. Mungo's can take the soul out of the Dementor and replace it back in Chris."

Piper's eyes glittered with a fraction of hope, "But what do we do with Chris in the mean time?"

Ginny, who - up until now - had remained silent and observant over the conversation, spoke, "We take him to St. Mungo's for care."

"Wait," Paige demanded suddenly. "This is all wonderful and everything but who are Healers? What is St. Mungo's?"

"Healers are wizarding doctors," Hermione, glancing at Paige, tried to explain. "They work at St. Mungo's, the wizarding hospital."

"How do we get him there?"

Hermione glanced unsurely at Ginny, who then replied, "Hermione and I will take you by side-along Apparation."

And then before anyone could ask, Hermione quickly spoke up, "It's the way that wizard's travel…"

"Let's do it," Wyatt said determinedly, "If there's even a chance that we can save Chris…I'm willing to take it."

He looked to his family, quite obviously seeking approval. Slowly, each family member either nodded or spoke their agreement. A small smile played across his handsome face and then Hermione allowed herself to smile as well. Maybe, just maybe, this could actually work.


	28. Salvation

**Author's Note:** For a little while, I was afraid that I wasn't going to be able to make a post today. Hurricane Earl brushed by my area, and for some time I worried that I would loose power. But, luckily for you, I did not! This chapter was - so far - the hardest chapter I've written in this story. I believe it took me four months to write it. I hope you are not able to tell it was difficult!

At this point, I'd like to say that if you were planning on partaking in the poll on my profile: you might want to do it soon. I am closing the poll down when I have finished writing _Her Last Mystery_. I am currently about half-way into Chapter Thirty. Once I've finished Chapter Thirty, I have to write Chapter Thirty-One, Chapter Thirty-Two and the Epilogue! Pick you choice for my next story soon!

A special shout out goes to _marbleandtoast_ for submitting the seventieth review! Congrats!

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Chapter Twenty-Seven:

"_Salvation_"

As promised, Ginny and Hermione transported the Halliwell family to St. Mungo's via side-along Apparation. It was a bit difficult and took quite a few trips, but in the end they all finally made it. Going up to the front desk, Hermione explained the predicament and what they had been told to do to solve it. The receptionist raised a peculiarly thin eyebrow at the family, gave a slight roll of her eyes and then sent them on their way - after providing them with a floating cot for Chris, allowing easier movement - to the same corridor that Hermione and Ginny had sped down just an hour or so earlier. They all then met up with the same Healer that Hermione and Ginny had spoken with.

"Afternoon, everyone," the Healer began, looking towards Chris and his family. "I am Healer Donaldson and I will be taking care your son. I trust you all understand the severity of the situation?"

Slowly, everyone nodded. Healer Donaldson clapped his hands together, "Good. Now, capturing a Dementor will not be easy. If you would like, St. Mungo's can arranged for Aurors to either aid you in capturing the Dementor, or capture it for you."

"No," Piper said decisively, "I need to do this myself."

"Very well, then," Healer Donaldson replied, slightly taken by surprise from the courage Piper exhibited, "We'll get him into a room and then I'll let you be on your way."

Taking control of the floating cot, Healer Donaldson lead the way to Chris' room. It was spacious and mostly empty. Just the mere sight of it made Hermione sick. She hated hospitals and this room did nothing to help her nerves. After placing Chris lightly on the bed, Healer Donaldson left the room and an awkward silence overcame everyone. Nobody knew just quite what they should do or say to comfort the skyrocketing nerves that everyone surely felt.

Trying to relieve some of the tension, Hermione spoke, "One problem down…one to go…"

Everyone looked at her, perplexed, and Melinda asked, "What?"

"How the bloody Hell do you capture a Dementor?"

* * *

Just a mere hour later found Hermione, Piper, Phoebe and Paige trudging through the catacombs where they had first found _Deces_. They retraced their footsteps, hoping it would lead them to the Dementor. The farther into the catacombs they walked, the colder it became and Hermione knew they must be getting close but with each step she took, she became less and less sure. She could almost see her breath and could easily feel the hope being drained from her. _This is never going to work_, she told herself, _It's impossible to capture a Dementor_!

She looked to the sisters. Piper was literally sobbing, obviously convinced that they would not prevail. Phoebe, though visibly shaken, was trying to keep her composure. And Paige was trembling, her feet barely able to move forward with each step she would take. Hermione sighed at how irrational they were being, looking _for_ a Dementor. It was unheard of and they were all going to die. She'd been foolish to believe this could actually work, foolish to believe they could actually save Chris. And now, because of her mistake, they would all suffer.

Still, through their despair, they traveled deeper and deeper into the catacombs, literally shaking in dread and fear of what they would face. Hermione, though they had not reached _Deces_ yet, could already see him standing in front of them, sucking the life right out of them. She could see Ginny's, Harry's and Ron's faces when they learned of her demise and how she foolishly ventured into the lair of a Dementor. Ginny's face was the worst, for it was she who - _Stop!_ Hermione shouted at herself, _You're right, you are going to die if you keep doing this to yourself! Don't let him get to you!_

Hermione took a deep breath and forced a smile to appear on her lips. They _would_ make it out of here, out of this if she had to drag them out kicking and screaming. She'd lived in despair long enough to know how to deal with it, one Dementor was no longer a match for her. She forced only happy thoughts to appear in her mind, shunning all thoughts of animosity, hatred and heartache. Though her feet protested, she carried herself forward and ahead of the sisters.

"Come on, girls," she encouraged, feeling the Dementor's hold on her loosen, "Let's go! We can do this!"

The sisters exchanged glances at one another, almost as if they could not fathom how Hermione had such sudden confidence. Reluctantly, they followed after her, quite obviously doubting her certainty and abilities. They rounded a corner and there he was. Dark and gloomy, the creature loomed before them and momentarily Hermione felt her strength weaken as she slipped back into despair. Shaking her head fiercely, she took a few steps forward and encouraged the Halliwells to do the same. But they did not move.

Groaning, Hermione prayed to Merlin that they had not forgotten their plan. She turned to Piper and practically screamed, "Piper hurry!"

Piper just stood there and looked to Hermione as if she'd gone frantic. The Dementor slowly approached them and her breath caught in her throat.

"Piper, _please_! We'll never be able to save Chris if you don't!" Hermione screamed.

Now the Dementor was twenty feet from her, and fast approaching. She took a few steps back, glancing at the sisters who were still frozen in fear and despair.

"Piper!" She croaked, trying to perfectly convey the intensity of the situation, "Piper, now! Freeze him!"

The Dementor came closer and closer to Hermione, so close that she could feel the cold penetrating her bones. Finally, the Dementor was nearly right on top of her. She could feel the life-force slowly being drained from her. She could feel herself slipping to the floor, loosing consciousness and any sense of reality that she might have held.

And then it stopped.

Hermione opened her eyes, staring towards the floor. She was sitting on the stone ground, her hands propped back behind her keeping her up. Her hair was falling down into her face, sticking uncomfortably to her forehead with sweat. Her heart was pounding dangerously in her chest. Gasping for breath, she glanced up to the Dementor and nearly screamed when she saw how close in proximity he was to her.

He was unmoving, lifeless, _frozen_. Piper froze him, she did it! Suddenly, a shadow crossed over her figure and she looked up again to see Piper smiling down on her, offering her hand to help Hermione up. Accepting the hand, Hermione smiled back and said, "You did it! For a moment there, I didn't think you were going to do it…"

Piper's smile turned serious, "For a moment…neither did I."

Glancing back towards the demon, Hermione questioned, "How are we going to contain him while we carry him?"

"Oh, I can handle that," Phoebe, almost out of breath, chimed in, and then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. Then she and her sisters recited:

"_Evil creature  
__unworthy of name  
__By will and magic  
__you are contained._"

A cage of crystals appeared around him, trapping him immobile if he should unfreeze and try to move. _How are we going to get him to St. Mungo's?_ Hermione questioned herself. She thought for a moment, before deciding what she should do. Taking out her wand, she mentally prayed to Merlin that it would work. With a wave of her wand, she shrunk both the Dementor and the cage that contained him. She heard gasps of astonishment from the sisters and for a brief moment was curious as to why. _I'll worry about that later_, she concluded. Using her wand, she guided the caged Dementor into her pocket, noting how icy it made her leg upon contact.

"That's it?"

Hermione glanced towards Paige, who had spoken, looking at her. She briefly put her hand on her now freezing pocket before she finally answered, "I think so."

"Alright. Well, let's go," Piper ordered. It was quite apparent that she wanted to get back to St. Mungo's and it was perfectly understandable why. All they had left to do to save Chris was to get the Dementor back to the hospital.

The four took off in the direction they had come from - the path much easier now that the Dementor had been subdued - with Piper in the lead. She rounded a corner, and then quickly turned back around to hide. Jumping slightly, Hermione whispered, "What is it?"

Piper gave a fleeting glance around the corner, and then responded, "Demon and a warlock. They're fighting."

"Should we attack?" Phoebe asked. "I'm sure we could kick their asses."

"Nah…" Piper said, shaking her head, "Let's save my son."

And then she nodded to Paige, who walked up between her sisters and grabbed their hands. "Want a ride?" She asked Hermione with a small smirk playing across her face.

Hermione laughed and said, "No, thanks. I can get myself out."

The sisters chuckled and then disappeared in the little white lights. Hermione smiled, took out her wand and Apparated home. When she appeared, the sisters were already standing at the door, ready to travel back to St. Mungo's. Piper swung the door open and commanded, "Let's go. It's almost over."

Hermione made her way to the front, leading the sisters back to the hospital. As soon as they arrived at the hospital, Piper pushed ahead and entered through the doors. By the time Hermione and her sisters entered the building, Piper was already making her way down the hall. Hermione, Phoebe and Paige followed her down the hall, up some stairs and then down another hallway until they finally returned to Chris' room. Healer Donaldson was there waiting for them, along with Ginny and the rest of the Halliwell family.

"I trust all went well?" The Healer asked when they entered the room.

Piper smiled brightly, "You bet your ass it did!"

"Well," he asked her, "where is he? Where is the Dementor?"

"Oh!" Hermione piped up, "I have him. Here, in my pocket."

Hermione reached into her pocket and pulled out the miniature, caged Dementor. Setting it on the floor, she waved her wand and transformed it back to its normal size. Healer Donaldson clapped his hands together and said, "Great! Alright, I'm going to have to ask all of you to please leave while my team and I replace his soul back into his body. We will call you back in when we are finished."

And so they paraded out of the room, seating themselves in the waiting room. Leo wrapped his arm around Piper, intertwining his hand with hers. Wyatt and Melinda sat side by side, brother comforting sister. Phoebe and Paige sat together, glancing occasionally at the other, trying to determine the other's emotions. Ginny sat calmly, watching Hermione pace in the middle of the room.

Breathing a large sigh, Hermione glanced to Ginny. She was thankful that Ginny, while still infuriated at her for encouraging _false_ hope in Harry, would come to Hermione's rescue in time of need. She was glad to see that this slight bit of animosity would blow over and all would be well again.

The door to Chris' room opened and Healer Donaldson reappeared from within. He cautiously walked up to the family, directing himself toward Piper. Hermione's eyes glistened as she watched him, fearing the worst. _Something's gone wrong_, she unwillingly convinced herself. Finally, he reached Piper, who had stood to meet his height, and wrapped his hands in hers. Leo stood behind her, his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders. Both mother and father breathed deeply, frightened of the news they were about to receive.

"Your son," he began, unsurely, "It is amazing. He is of a select few to survive the procedure. He is still unconscious, but you may see him now."

They all breathed a big sigh of relief, and starting to trail back into the room. Hermione, who'd been following behind Ginny, stopped her best friend and pulled her aside in the hallway. "What the…?" Ginny began to ask, but Hermione silenced her, "Thank you."

"For what?"

"If it weren't for you," Hermione said solemnly, "this wouldn't have happened; Chris would still be without his soul."

"No, you'd have found a way."

Before Hermione could respond, Melinda came to the doorway, calling out to her, "Hey, you. You might want to come in here. He's talking in his sleep."

She and Ginny looked to one another and then quickly entered into the room. Hermione still felt the same displeasure upon entering the hospital room, but it was not as pronounced as it had been when she had previously entered. Melinda led her to the bed where Chris lay, his eyes still shut. The only sign of his recovery was that his cheeks were starting to regain their colour. As she stood by his bed, she couldn't help but feel a bit content. Maybe things were not so bad after all.

"_Hermione_."

She nearly jumped at the sound of his voice, hoarse as it was. Immediately, her eyes drifted to his, a pout forming on her lips when she realized they were still closed. _He's talking in his sleep_, Melinda's voice came back to remind her. _Bloody Hell!_ She finally determined, _He's calling my name! Me. ME!_

"_Hermione_."

He called her name again. Taking his hand, she sat down in the chair behind her. Over and over, he whispered her name, each time a smile growing on her face.


	29. Irrational Spontaneity

**Author's Note:** Well, it's been a while since I've made a post, but here it is: Chapter Twenty-Eight! I'll think you'll enjoy it. Oh, and as of the last time I checked the poll on my profile - which was only about ten minutes ago - _Know Thy Enemy_ is winning!

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Chapter Twenty-Eight:  
**"_Irrational Spontaneity_"

A few hours later, Piper, Leo, Wyatt, Melinda, Phoebe, Paige, Hermione, Ginny and now Harry - who'd arrived recently to help support Hermione - were still gathered in Chris' room. Like before in the attic, the hospital room was becoming increasingly unbearable. There were just _too_ many people in one room. Hermione wasn't quite sure how much more she could take. Excusing herself to the ladies room, she got up from her chair, dislodging her hand from Chris'. Sparing a quick glance at him before she left the room, she finally determined that he would be alright without her presence for a few moments. He'd stopped calling out to her a while ago, anyhow. Walking down the vacant halls of St. Mungo's, for it was now later in the evening and the rush of patients had diminished as the country went to sleep, Hermione couldn't help but feel a slight sense of serenity. It had been months since she was this happy, despite the fact that the man she was currently interested in - she refused to call him her _boyfriend_ because they still barely knew one another and she was still unsure if she was ready for a relationship such as that yet - was currently unresponsive and in the hospital. Entering into the loo, she laughed at the irony of it all.

"I must be mental," she said to herself as she approached the mirror.

Turning on the faucet, she splashed water on her face, running some up into her hairline. Sighing, she watched as the water ran back down her face, down her neck and down into the little bit of cleavage that her shirt brought to view. She smiled awkwardly, "Definitely mental…"

She, reaching for a towel, gave her head a little shake before she wiped the remaining water from her face, and then she left the restroom and returned to Chris' room. When she reentered, Piper, who was now sitting in the seat previously occupied by Hermione, gave a weak little smile, apologetic even. It seemed Piper felt a little guilty at having taken her seat. Hermione was not sure why; Piper was his mother, she should have been sitting there in the first place. Quickly glancing around the room, she found a seat right beside Harry on the couch that he and Ginny shared. Casually, she sat down and he put a hand on her shoulder. She smiled at him, her best friend who was more of a brother than anything, and he said, "How are you?"

She laughed at how ironic it sounded, "Oh, you know, the usual."

He laughed back, but then his smile became a grimace and Hermione could see the tell-tale twitch in his hand.

"Oh, no," she whispered. It was happening again.

Silently, she cast the '_Silencio_' spell on the room; the Healers didn't need to hear this. Looking around Harry, she shot a warning glance at Ginny. Her eyes bulged out and she jumped out of her seat to come around to be face-to-face with her husband. Harry's hand on Hermione's shoulder was tensing up, his nails digging into the sensitive skin just under her shirt.

"Harry," she pleaded, "Relax. You're hurting me."

And then, almost as if he had heard her plea and could not resist it any longer, he jerked his hand away, repositioning it above his scar. It seemed that then the dam broke. He sank to the floor, a horrible groan escaping from his lips. Writhing on the floor, he practically screamed in anguish. Hermione glanced around quickly, the Halliwells were staring at Harry in horror, obviously aghast with the happenings.

Like before, Ginny surrounded Harry in her arms. "Shsh, my love," she cooed to him as she stroked his hair away from his forehead, "It's alright, you can come back to us now."

Little beads of sweat were already beginning to form at his hairline. He was tense on the floor, little whimpers emerging from his throat before finally he screamed, "SIRIUS!"

He jumped out of Ginny's grip, plummeting himself on all-fours. Hermione was quick to take up Ginny's place, entrapping him in her arms, both for his support and for his protection lest he throw himself into the wall or some other object. His hands scratched at her arms, he was desperately searching for some kind of sustenance, anything to signal that it was alright. He grunted against her, and then threw himself backwards towards Ginny again. Ginny, who hadn't been ready for the blow, tumbled backwards and, upon regaining her composure, cried, "Harry! Wake up, come to us! We're here! Everything is fine!"

He let out a low moan that greatly resembled a weeping dog. He sank back into her comforting embrace, his eyes finally opening. Gasping for breath, he managed, "Ginny…"

"What was it, love?" She questioned him as she calmly peered into his emerald eyes, "What did you see?"

"It was Sirius," his hoarse voice replied, "He was in pain, screaming. Something was trying to kill him."

Hermione's heart caught in her throat, "What was? What was trying to kill him?"

He thought for a moment and then he finally said, "I don't know. I don't remember seeing anything near him, it was almost as if the air itself was attacking him."

Hermione sighed, "We have to rescue him soon."

"I agree, I don't intend on making my godfather endure that any longer."

Hermione chanced a glance at Ginny, who caught her glance and merely shrugged. It seemed, to Hermione at least, that Ginny had come to terms - relatively speaking - with the situation with Sirius. She may not believe he was still alive, but she would go along with the _charade_ for the sake of Harry - he needed closer. Drawing her away from her thoughts, an interrupting cough - one meant to catch attention - sounded throughout the room.

"What can we do to help?"

Hermione looked to Piper, who had spoken, and shook her head, "Don't worry about it. We can handle this on our own, I wouldn't want you to get injured on our behalf."

"No, please," Wyatt spoke up, "Let us help. We're in your debt now." And then he passed a solemn glance to his little brother, before returning a pleading gaze to the witch who was finally making him see that Chris wasn't so little anymore. He was a grown man and he was falling in love.

"I think it's a good idea; the more help we can get, the more easy it will be to save Sirius," Harry interjected.

Hermione sighed once again, and finally conceded, "Well, I'm still not sure about it but now is not the time to be discussing this. We should wait until Chris is awake and able to put in his opinion. It's only fair."

"Don't worry about me, I'm alright."

Hermione's eyes jerked towards the direction of the voice and sure enough her suspicions had been right. Chris was awake and had actually spoken! He was okay! Her lips let out a little gasp as she watched his mother and sister smother him in hugs and kisses. His brother playfully punched him on the arm, warning him to never scare him like that again. His father wrapped him in one of those endearing father-son hugs. Phoebe and Paige each hugged him and planted a kiss on his cheek. And then his attention turned toward Hermione. The intensity of his gaze was strong enough to move mountains, and it certainly sent a similar reaction upon her heart. It felt as if her heart would jump right out of her chest and land on the floor, beating for all to hear. She took in a sharp breath, her lungs suddenly feeling void of all air. His eyes permeated through her skin, her soul and she wasn't entirely sure she minded.

Suddenly, she became aware of the room's inhabitants leaving, giving the budding couple privacy in their reunion. And suddenly, she became overcome with emotions. She remembered the fear she'd had of never seeing him alive again, never hearing his voice or gazing one last time into his eyes. She remembered the betrayal, the despair that the world seemed it fitting to rid her life of any chance she had at happiness.

"How is it possible that we love each other?" she finally got the nerve to ask.

"Does it matter?"

"Yes! Yes, it does matter!" she practically shouted. "How could it not? We still hardly know anything about each other, we can't be in love."

"And why not, Hermione? It shouldn't matter how long we've known each other, or how much we know. None of that matters when it comes to love."

"But it _does_ matter," she retorted, "Why can't you see that? It matters to me. I have to know if this is real. If…if it's really and truly possible for us to be genuinely in love. I need to know if this is just simply infatuation. I don't want to chance my heart, to risk everything only to be let down and find out that none of it was real. I don't want to be hurt again."

"I'm not your ex-boyfriend! I'm not gonna hurt you," he snapped back at her, obviously offended that she appeared not to trust him, "When are you going to wake up and realize that you're only hurting yourself? Denying yourself of your desires simply because one guy wasn't worthy of your affections. I love you, you love me. Why do you have to make everything so complicated? When are you going to listen to your heart and stop listening to your stubborn brain?"

"It's not logical, none of this is," she said, annoyed that he was smiling. How could this be funny? "It's not possible, it _can't_ be possible. It's impossible! We are _not_ in love!"

"Oh, sweet mother of the holy God in heaven! You're going to be absolutely impossible!"

"Going to be? What do you mean _going to be_?"

His response was simple, "I'm going to marry you one day."

"Well, I disagree," she replied, "I have no interest in a committing relationship at the moment."

"Ah, but you see…the key phrase is _at the moment_," he laughed, "Things change, Hermione dear. And besides, if you had no interest in a committing relationship, as you seem to believe, then why even go on a date with me?"

"Things change?" she shouted, blatantly ignoring the question he had asked of her. "Go ahead. Keep your head in the clouds, keep dreaming."

And then she stormed out of the room, utterly in shock at how audacious he had seemed to become after his near-death experience. Bidding goodbye to his family and to Ginny and Harry, she claimed that she was tired and that she was going home to get some rest. It was a likely excuse, after all…it was very late into the evening hours now and surely everyone was tired and would be understanding. When she appeared in her apartment, she stole her way to the cabinet in her kitchen and pulled out a glass and the bottle of Firewhiskey she kept for emergencies. Filling up the glass with a hearty shot, she let out an exasperated scream, and then downed it all in one gulp. Setting down the glass a bit harder than she intended, she never heard the floorboards creak behind her. She never heard the footsteps approach her, but she did hear the voice when it spoke to her.

"That's bad for you, you know."

Her entire body cringed at the voice. _Ginny_. Slowly, she spun around to face her best friend, already dreading the lecture she was sure would come. "Yes, that may be so…but it's _damn_ good on my nerves."

"You love him," Ginny said, her tone very straightforward. "You can't deny it, no matter how hard you try. You're scared, that's easy to see. You're afraid to love because of how you were hurt. And blinded by your fear, you don't see that your only hurting yourself more than you think you'll be hurt if you surrender."

"Ginny, I don't love him. I know you think I do, but I don't. I can't. We've only been dating for a few days - and that's if you can even consider us to be dating. We've only known each other for weeks, we're still trying to learn each other, to get to know one another. We don't love each other. We just don't. The mere thought of us being in love, it's…irrational."

Ginny laughed, shaking her head, "Love is irrational, Hermione, and you just have to learn to embrace the spontaneity of it all. And you have to do it before it's gone."

"But I'm afraid of getting hurt again," said Hermione weakly.

"Well, I'm afraid it's up to you to take that risk." And then she left, returning to Merlin only knows where. Hermione sank to the floor, pondering the conversation. Was Ginny right? Should she just learn to embrace it before she lost it? Sighing, she pulled herself up from the floor. Grabbing her wand and spinning on the spot, she Apparated back to St. Mungo's. Upon arriving to Chris' hall, she found it empty. His family had returned home, presumably to get some rest as well. Cautiously, she entered Chris' room and stood before him, gazing down upon him.

"Shouldn't you be at home?" he grumbled.

"Oh, shut up, would you?" she retorted, her words a bit more harsh than she had intended.

She took a deep breath and hoped to Merlin with all her heart that she was not making a mistake, "All my life, I've told people things. Various things, things they probably didn't care about. I've never really showed anyone anything - I guess I never learned how. But now - and, mind you, this is a big step for me - I want to show you something…"

And then _she_ kissed him.


	30. the Plan

**Author's Note:** It's finally here! I do apologize for how long it has taken me to get this post up. We're getting very close to the end, now... I really hope you like it!

Those familiar with Charmed will recognize spells posted in this chapter.

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Chapter Twenty-Nine:

"_the Plan_"

No more than a week later, Chris had returned home to be with his family. He had been moved into one of the guest bedrooms at the Manor for the time being, as his mother was not wholly convinced that he had fully recovered. The Halliwell Manor also had another guest, who had been staying in the other guest bedroom. Hermione had been invited by Piper to stay at the family home for a week or two so that she could become well-acquainted with his family. After all, if Hermione was to be Chris' girlfriend, it was expected she be on good terms with his family and it would make it easier for them to plan how best to rescue Sirius. Every morning, around ten - San Francisco time - when it would be six in the evening in London, the Halliwell sisters, Leo, Wyatt, Melinda, Chris and Hermione, Harry and Ginny, and Ron would gather in the attic of the Manor and discuss various ways to discover where exactly Sirius was. They knew that he had gone through the Veil, but they did not know where the Veil led. That piece of knowledge was imperative if they were going to be successful in rescuing Harry's godfather. After all, knowing where he was would help determine if it would be safe.

And so now, a week after Chris' return home, they all gathered in the overly crowded attic brainstorming. Chris and Hermione sat on the floor in front of the Book of Shadows, side-by-side and holding hands, both paying great attention to everyone's ideas. Ron sat on the other side of the room, careful to not look in the direction of the newly formed couple. Phoebe's response to the couple was much the same as Ron's, but for a totally different reason. Though Hermione had accepted the relationship, she still was apprehensive about the idea of them actually being in love and Phoebe, being an Empath, could feel every time her nerves flared up about it. It was, understandably, not pleasant. That would all change once Hermione finally came to terms with her feelings. In avoidance of the couple, Phoebe paced back and forth by the back window, near the pedestal where the Book was normally held. Harry and Ginny sat on the Victorian sofa, both locked in thought. Piper and Leo sat together on a rather large chair. Every time Piper would get an idea, she would turn to her husband and ask if he thought it plausible. Paige stood, leaning against the wall, by the door. She looked exhausted, but had refused to go home when she was offered. Melinda and Wyatt sat on either side of Hermione and Chris, trying to get their fill of what answers the Book might hold.

"I've got it!" Phoebe finally shouted.

"What is it?"

"Tell us."

"Let us have it!"

Several voices responded in unison. She rolled her eyes and then replied, "What if Harry were to cast the _To Find a Lost Love_ spell? Surely that would help us find his godfather?"

"Wait," Harry said, "Cast a spell? The kind that you all cast? I don't think that would work, I've never used magic like that. I wouldn't know how to do it."

"Oh, come on Harry, don't be so modest. If any of us wand-ies can do it, it's you," Ginny encouraged.

"I think Harry's right," Leo spoke up, "Harry shouldn't do a spell that he's not used to, especially not one of that magnitude. Maybe, since you've done it before…" Phoebe glared at him momentarily for that comment and for reminding her of the circumstances under which she had cast the spell. "…Maybe you should be the one to cast it, just change the words around a bit."

Hermione agreed, "I like that idea better. It sounds a lot less risky."

Phoebe sighed, "Alright. I'll do it. Just give me a minute to find and set up the spell."

Walking up to Chris and Hermione, she received the Book of Shadows and flipped through the old pages for a few minutes until she apparently found what she was looking for. Grabbing a pen and paper, she copied down a rewritten version of the spell and then arranged five candles, representing the five points of the pentagram, in the middle of the floor. Sitting in the middle of the five candles, she recited:

"_Whither Sirius  
__wherever you be,  
__through time and space  
__take your place  
and show me._"

Slowly, she sank to floor and was unconscious. In an awkward silence, everyone waited for her to wake up. In her 'sleep,' she moved a few times, slight moans escaping from her lips. And then, suddenly, like Harry when his scar would hurt, she screamed. She writhed on the floor, her screams penetrating every inch of the room. Piper jumped up from her seat and met Paige at the Book. Paige looked to Piper and said, with slight amusement, "Déjà Vu much?" Piper quickly smacked her sister before they both recited:

"_Return my love  
__wherever she be  
__through time and space  
__bring her  
__back to me._"

Phoebe gasped loudly and sat up quickly, much in the way one does when waking up from a nightmare. Her sisters wrapped her in their embrace, calming her by telling her she was home now and that everything was fine. Finally, after coughing wildly for a few minutes, she was able to calm down enough to speak.

"It was worse than last time."

Paige looked at her with a perplexed face, "Worse than the demonic wastelands?"

"Yes," Phoebe answered, "worse than even that. The scenery, though…it was beautiful. Something that you'd see in Italy, or some place similar. But there were thousands - maybe millions - of spirits floating around. They all looked horrible, like they'd all died an awful death. And then there was one, nothing more than a black mass of existence. Oh, I don't know how to describe it. Black mist, maybe? I don't know. Whatever it is, the others are afraid of it."

"Did you see Sirius?" Harry practically screamed at her, "Is it safe to rescue him."

She shook her head, "No, I didn't see him. I'm sorry. But, if we were to try to go there, we'd have to be very cautious. I'd rather not find out what that black mist is, you know?"

Harry nodded his head in agreement, and Hermione, ready to move on to the next step in this rescue mission, asked, "Do you have any idea where you were?"

"No," she said simply, shaking her head fiercely, as if trying to rid her brain of the memory.

Paige seemed to have an idea, "Maybe we should scry for him?"

"That won't work," Phoebe stated, "Wherever he is, he's on another plane. Maybe even the Astral Plane."

"We could write a spell to modify the scry, make it so that it will work on another plane."

Everyone's attention turned towards Melinda, who had been the one to make the suggestion, as they thought about the possibility of such a thing working. As she always had, and always would, Piper turned to her husband and questioned his seemingly endless amount of knowledge in the magical arts.

"Would it work?"

He paused before he answered, pondering the chances, running the scenarios, "Well, in theory it would work. I really don't see why it wouldn't."

"How would we change it, though?"

Without responding, Melinda got up from her seat on the floor, grabbed the pen and paper Phoebe had used to rewrite the _To Find a Lost Love_ spell and then wrote her own spell. Hermione watched her and couldn't help but smile. Melinda must feel so proud of herself. She was coming into her own, practicing in her own sort of way. Melinda finished the spell and passed the paper around for all to evaluate. When Hermione finally was able to read it, her smile grew. It was slightly childish, but, she assumed, would get the job done. The Charmed Ones gathered all the scrying materials together, including a candle to consecrate the crystal. As they poured the wax on the candle, they chanted:

"_Powers of the witches rise.  
__Using their bond, we hope to scry.  
__Another plane we'd like to see.  
__Show the wizard, Sirius, to me._"

And with that, they handed the crystal to Harry, who - unsurely - received it. "What are you giving me this for?" he asked.

Melinda smiled encouragingly, "Well, the spell uses the bond that you and your godfather have, so you have to be the one to scry for him. It's the only way it will work."

"But I don't know how to _scry_ for someone; I barely even know what it is."

"It's easy," Chris said, "You just wave the crystal in a circle over the map and then when it has found who you are looking for, it will drop and that's where they are."

"I don't know if I can do it," Harry said, obviously unsure of this idea.

"Oh, go on, Harry," Ron persuaded, "You're the Boy Who Lived; if anyone can do it, it's you."

And then Ginny laid a hand on his shoulder, smiling down at her husband, her other hand resting on her stomach that had already begun to grow a baby-bump. Harry looked up at her and smiled slightly. She didn't have to say anything, for just her touch and just her smile was enough to inspire Harry to leap across oceans.

"Okay, I'll do it," he finally determined.

They placed a world map in front of him, and everyone watched as Harry slowly - and a bit unsurely - swung the crystal over the map. In the back of the room, the Charmed Ones chanted the spell one more time, as if ensuring its success. In a circle, the crystal swung, never once pausing over a location. All eyes were set upon the pendulum, waiting for it to finally drop. Beside her, Chris squeezed Hermione's hand in an attempt to calm her nerves that he knew must be building. And finally, the crystal dropped.

"Well," Piper began sweetly, "where did it land?"

"Italy, but I can't see where; it's too small."

"Hmm…" Piper said as she made her way to a shelf packed with maps they'd accumulated throughout the years - when you're a witch, you never know where you're going to need to scry. She flipped through a couple of maps and then finally found the one she was looking for. "Here," she said, handing it to him, "Here's a map of Italy. Try again."

Harry repeated the process, much more confident in his abilities this time and when the crystal dropped, he never gave anyone the chance to question where it landed. "Poveglia."

"Poveglia? Where's that at?" Phoebe asked.

Harry peered down at the map, "It's in the…_Laguna Veneta_, near Venice."

_Near Venice?_ Hermione had gone to Venice, and he'd been there the whole time? Guilt rushed through her; she could have saved him.

On a shelf laid a laptop and Phoebe grabbed it. With slight determination, she said, "Let's find out a little about this _Poveglia_, shall we?"

Hermione chuckled in amusement as Ron and Ginny eyed the computer with awe. They were, undoubtedly, trying to figure out how a "box" could give them information. She smiled when she saw Ginny lean over and whisper in Harry's ear, "What is that?" And then she couldn't help but laugh when both Ginny and Ron jumped at the sound the computer made, signaling that it was powering up.

Phoebe stared at the screen for a few moments, obviously searching for information. Finally, her eyes lit up with discovery and she cheered, "Aha! I found it!"

Harry was eager for information, "Well, what's it like?"

"Uh-oh," she said after a few moments of silence, "this doesn't look too good." And then she recited, "_Five miles of the coast of Venice, Italy lies an island of foreboding. Its dark history bids visitors to stay away. To the locals it is known as the Island of the Dead, or the Land of No Return. However, for most it is simply called: Poveglia. During the daylight hours, Poveglia is a place of beauty and what would appear to be peace, but come night-fall the place holds an aura of evil._

"_The history of Poveglia dates back to the 1300s during the Bubonic Plague, more commonly known as the Black Death. With much of Venice's population either dead or dying, authorities needed a solution to isolate the sick. Their "solution" was to take the sick and force them into boats, hooded, and cart them away to an unknown place. This unknown place was Poveglia._

"_Once on Poveglia, the sick would be buried in Plague Pits, even though some were still alive. Then the pits would be burned. The piles of the dead were so massive that it has been said that they reached all the way Hell. To this day, the ashes remain and bones are still scoured up by fishermen in the nearby waters._

"_But the haunting history of Poveglia does not stop with the Black Death. Hundreds of years later, in 1922, a hospital was opened on its grounds. It was not long until patients began to see spirits from the tragedy six hundred years prior. The Head Surgeon believed them to be mental and took upon himself the opportunity to study and experiment with the human brain. It is said that if you went into his office, you never came back out. Some time later, the surgeon was pushed by unseen hands from the bell tower atop the hospital; from which, though the bell was removed in the 1930s and the tower since bricked up, you can still hear the bell ringing from time to time._"

"Do you think demons are involved?" Piper asked.

Phoebe shook her head, "No, not demons. Just battered souls. Spirits of the dead, trapped because of the torture they were forced to endure."

"Will the spirits attack us?" Hermione had to know. She'd never fought spirits before and was not confident in that they could be defeated.

Phoebe glanced up from the computer and locked her in her gaze, "They might."

"Well, that's it, then," Harry determined, "We go tonight. We go through the Veil tonight."

Hermione started to protest, started to say they still needed more time. But it was too late. The decision had been made.


	31. Through the Veil

**Author's Note:** I have finished writing _Her Last Mystery_. In the end, I combined Chapters Thirty and Thirty-One. So, the story is not as long as I said it would be chapter-wise. Nothing was taken out and what you see published is what it was originally intended to be. There will be one more chapter after this one, and then the Epilogue. I trust you will enjoy all of it. This is also the longest chapter in the entire story and I'm quite proud of it!

A special shout out goes to _acelili_ for being the eighieth reviewer!

Oh! And _Know Thy Enemy_ won the poll on my profile. I will take a small break before I begin writing again, but look for that once it is published! I'm so excited!

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Chapter Thirty:

"_Through the Veil_"

The moon graced the streets of London with her rays in a solemn reminder that they shouldn't be doing what they were attempting to do, and Hermione couldn't help but feel more than a bit nervous. What were they thinking? Going into the Veil, a place from which _no one_ had ever returned, without even a single ounce of preparation? She was convinced that Harry had finally gone completely mental; even Harry, at the peak of any insanity he had ever allowed himself to succumb to, wouldn't normally do something this irrational. Hermione understood his need for action, the need to save his godfather; she really did. But why couldn't he have waited a little longer, waited until they were better prepared for what they may face?

Finally, they made it to the Ministry of Magic. Hermione led them down staircases and down hallways until they reached the Department of Mysteries. Ron groaned upon entering the circular room and Hermione smirked a little. This room was confusing and nearly impossible to solve if one was not an Unspeakable. Walking in front of all the doors, Hermione easily determined which door they needed to take to get them to the Death Chamber. She pushed the door open, allowing the Charmed Ones, Wyatt, Chris, Harry and Ron to enter. Ginny and Melinda had been forced to stay at the Manor with Leo, not allowed to go because it would be too dangerous. After all, Leo was no longer magical, Melinda was only seventeen, and Ginny was currently carrying the heir to the Chosen One.

Hermione entered the large room, instantly dreading the mission ahead. With the stench of death, the Veil rested upon its dais, beckoning her closer, ready for its next victim. As soon as he entered the room, Harry sprinted to the Veil, stopping only when he stood before it, near enough to slip his hand through if he wanted. Her breath quickened, her eyes transfixed on the billowing fabric. A lump in her heart, she realized: this could be the beginning of the end. She could die tonight, they all could.

She nearly screamed when Harry stepped through the Veil, the Charmed Ones and Wyatt following behind. She looked to Chris, who looked nearly as frightened as she was. Without even realizing what she was doing, she entwined her hand in his.

In a hoarse voice, she whispered, realizing that this was what all her hard work had lead her to, "All time haunts for those who seek fortunes bitter enemy. Lies who haunt but do not speak in grief of secret, forever hidden in secrecy."

"Ready?" he asked, his voice already shaking.

"I'll never be ready for this."

And then, together, they walked through the Veil.

Immediately, the two began falling and it only took Hermione a moment to realize that they were falling from some unidentified point in the sky. She closed her eyes and could only hope that the fall wouldn't kill them. Hermione landed on Chris in a rather _intimate_ position, saddling him with one leg on each side of his waist, and she blushed as she clambered to get off of him. She stood, glancing up to the sky, and saw the Veil, floating directly above them with an ominous atmosphere about it; they would have to find another way out. With a sigh of relief, she realized that they had only fallen about ten feet. She turned back to Chris and asked, "You alright?"

"I'm fine," he replied with a smirk. Hermione rolled her eyes and then she glanced around at their surroundings and her heart sank.

"Where is everyone? They were supposed to wait for us!"

Chris, still seated on the ground and still smirking, looked around. His mind registered that his family was no where to be found, his smirk and amusement fading from his face. _Where could they be?_ Hermione asked herself, _They _just_ went through the Veil! They should be here!_ Frantically, her eyes tore through their surroundings, but to no avail.

"Harry! Ron!" she shouted, trying desperately to locate them. "Where are you?"

"Mom! Wyatt! Aunt Phoebe!" Chris called out, finally bringing himself to his feet. And then he said, in a defeated whisper, "Aunt Paige?"

Hermione sighed, shaking her head as helplessness consumed her, "I don't think they can hear us. We're on our own…"

"We should go back."

Hermione looked at Chris and then at the Veil in the sky above them, "But how?"

Letting out a short laugh, he asked, "Hermione? Have you forgotten that we both are magical?"

"Chris, this is serious," she rolled her eyes. "Something could be seriously wrong!"

"Alright," he surrendered, putting his hands up as a signal of his submission, "We'll just orb back to the Manor and figure out what happened."

"But what if they're here?" she screamed. "What if…what if they're hurt?"

"Hermione," he said as he approached her and then, when he finally reached her, put his hands on each of the upper part of her arms and he said her name again, "Hermione. Hermione…"

He repeated her name until her breathing, that she hadn't even noticed had picked up in pace, slowed, until her heartbeat calmed. He said her name until she was sure she'd melt into his safety, into the sanctity of his affections. She was falling in love with this man whom she barely knew and she found herself almost willing to succumb to his every desire and never allow him to slip through her fingers…_almost_.

"Hermione," he said one final time. "If they were here, we would have seen them already…hurt or not. Think about it… What are the odds of six people getting injured, without a single trace of evidence to prove their injury, all at the same time? They're not here. Something must've happened that wouldn't let them go through. They'll be at the Manor, and that's where we're gonna go. Remember? That was the plan…"

She sighed. She did remember. They had planned for something like this to happen. If - for whatever reason - they were missing someone when they all made it through the Veil, they were all - including the person, or persons, missing - to meet back at the Manor, where they would then work on their next plan-of-action. Groaning, she momentarily wanted to slap him. _Of course_ she remembered! She was the one who'd come up with the bloody plan in the first place! But now the plan did nothing to shake away her feeling of anxiety. She couldn't help but feel as if there was more wrong than they had anticipated - she felt evil permeating from this place.

Finally, she answered, "Fine. Orb us back to the Manor."

"Hold on," he said, as he encouragingly wrapped her in his arms. And then she, already closing her eyes, waited…and waited…and waited. But nothing happened. She could feel him tensing up against her, trying to get them to the Manor, but it was not working. Slowly, she opened her eyes and peered up at his face, trying to evaluate just how deep a hole they had dug for themselves. His eyes were squeezed shut, as if he were trying with all his might, not yet ready to admit to her that he may have been wrong.

Ultimately, he pulled away, subjugated. "I'm sorry," he said to her, his defeat etching his face with shame.

Hermione tried to smile sweetly. How did one comfort a man whom believed he had failed? She did not know, but that did not mean she was not going to try. "Don't worry about it," she said, trying to sound as if all hope was not lost - no matter how much she may have believed that it was. "It's quite alright. Maybe your type of magic just doesn't work on this plane. Maybe, because our magic is different, mine will work. _I_ have means of transportation too, you know…"

Without explaining any further, she whipped out her wand, grabbed hold of Chris' arm and spun on the spot. But, to her dismay, she did not feel the air tightening around her. In fact, nothing about the air around her changed. Slowly, she released his arm and shook her head.

"It's no use," she said, sinking to the ground. "We're trapped."

The reality of her words hit her at full force and she began to rock back and forth, an unusual action for Hermione. But how could she not? Was it not _her_ fault they were in this mess? She could have pressured Harry to wait, to allow them time to be better prepared. But she didn't, and now they were trapped in another plane and they didn't even seem to be able to utilize their magic. Lost in her despair, she didn't notice Chris kneeling down in front of her, but when she finally did…she was not pleased.

"_What_?" she hissed. "Would you like to take this opportunity to lecture me for my lapse of common sense, and my fall to idiocy?"

He merely laughed at her statement, shaking his head and grabbing her by the arms to pull her back to her feet. Annoyed at both him and herself, she inquired, a bit rudely, "What - the _fuck_ - is so funny?"

But this only made him laugh more. It was as if he found it amusing that Hermione Granger would even dare use foul language. Finally, she'd decided she'd had quite enough. She slapped him.

He stepped back from her, stunned that she had struck him. She had not hurt him, but the mere gesture spoke louder than any shouting she would have attempted. He put his hands up defensively again, surrendering.

"Relax, darling - "

"Don't you dare call me _darling_!" she interrupted before he had time to finish.

With a submissive wave of his hand, he began again, "Relax, _Hermione_. This'll get figured out. You've forgotten… My mother and aunts are the Charmed Ones, three of the most powerful witches to walk this planet. And your best friend, he's the - what did you call it? The Chosen One! They won't leave us here…"

At last, it seemed as if she was calming down. "Alright," she sighed. "If you say so. I'm sorry I hit you. Did it hurt?"

"Did it hurt?" he laughed. "Of course it didn't hurt! Sweetheart - " he flinched, nearly afraid she would reprimand him for calling her by a pet-name again, "you couldn't hurt me if you tried."

She breathed a quick sigh of relief, as if - in that moment - whether or not she had hurt him was the most important thing on her mind. And then she faltered again, any sign of relief gone from her face.

"What are we going to do?" she asked. Already, she sounded as if she wanted to give up.

Chris smiled. Now it was his turn to comfort _her_. "We're going to do what we came here to do. We're going to save Sirius, and _then_ we are going to find a way out of here."

"But," she began, still not entirely convinced that their efforts would be fruitful, "what if we run into any of the spirits haunting this place? There's bound to be a few that don't want us here, let alone helping someone escape."

"You know what, Hermione? You ask too many questions…"

"But - "

"But nothing! Look, we're here aren't we? We might as well do what we came here to do anyway…"

"Fine…" she said grumpily, and then she stalked off into the forest. Chris rolled his eyes and followed after her. All around them helpless spirits floated, some with hoods draped entirely over their heads - covering their faces, and some without. It was a sickening feeling, knowing that death surrounded them. Hermione glanced quickly, warily at them, realizing with each turn of their heads as Chris and Hermione slowly walked by that they knew they were there. They knew someone had invaded their space, and some shook their heads sadly - as if they knew the intruders would not leave.

"Hey, Hermione…" Chris called out in a stage whisper.

"What, Chris?"

Slowly, he turned his head to face her and smiled, "Will you marry me?"

_What?_

Hermione quickly turned her head to look at him with a look that blatantly expressed: _What the Hell?_ Shaking her head, she turned away from him and asked, "What - in that _fucked_ up brain of yours - made you think that _now_, of all times, would possibly be the perfect time to ask someone - let alone _me_! - to marry you?"

He just smirked, "Well…I figured there's a…oh, I don't know…ninety percent chance we won't make it out of this… So, you know, I thought that now would be as good a time as any."

"You're mental!" she sighed exasperatedly.

"So, that's a no?"

"Of course it's a no!" she yelled and then marched off deeper into the forest, expecting to find more trees, but instead finding a building that could only be the hospital Phoebe had read about on the internet. She gasped when she saw the Mediterranean structure looming before her, for it was the same building she'd seen Sirius standing before in all those dreadfully haunting dreams. And in that moment, she knew it had been no coincidence that _she_ had been the one to discover the passage that lead them here, that _she_ had been the one to have those dreams, and that _she_ would be the one to save Sirius - if she could only save herself.

A twig cracked behind her, and she jumped, spinning around to face who was approaching her. With a sigh of relief, she saw Chris stepping cautiously out of the forest. Her relieved face fell a little when she realized that she had left him alone in a place such as this, but her guilty thoughts were interrupted when he spoke.

"You think he's in there?"

"I don't know," she said, looking up at the eerie edifice. "But I suppose it's worth a look." She was secretly disappointed he had not mentioned the proposal.

Cautiously, the two entered through a door barely hanging on by the hinges. Immediately, the stench of death succumbed them. It made Hermione sick. How many people had perished in the fires during the plague, and how many people had been ruthlessly experimented on at the hands of the Head Surgeon? What were they doing, looking for Sirius? They were powerless against anything they might encounter and they were missing six people! They needed to go back, to call this whole thing off and figure out how to get out. But Sirius needed them, too… Hadn't he suffered this Hell long enough? Hadn't he been trapped in this spiritual wasteland long enough? She sighed, they couldn't go back…not now. Not when they were this close to potentially rescuing him. Chris was right, they would find Sirius and _then_ figure out how to leave this Hell far behind them.

They walked in silence, neither one of them knowing just quite what to say in their unusual situation. There were no sounds to surround them, to distract them from the animosity seeping into their beings. Hermione was beginning to shake, terrified of what they would find. They turned around a corner and right in front of them lay a horrific sight. A barely recognizable human form stood screaming in the middle of the hall. Flames were feeding upon the flesh of the victim and it was all Hermione could do not to scream herself. Suddenly, the figure took off in the opposite direction down the hallway and Hermione launched herself in a sprint to follow. She barely registered Chris calling out to her, begging to her to come back. She barely registered his footsteps when they followed hers, and when they were suddenly so far away that could not hear them anymore. All she knew was that this unnamed figure was being tortured and she felt an incessant need to help.

Through the labyrinth of a hospital, the figure led her down hallways and corridors and up staircases until finally they were on a never ending staircase that wrapped around a small boxed room. Hermione was barely able to register that they were in the bell-tower before the figure abruptly darted up and around the last turn and disappeared. Quickening her pace, Hermione finished the last few steps and what she saw at the top was enough to make her loose all sanity she may have still possessed, and she screamed.

There, in front of her and hanging from the tower, was the disgusting and fly-covered body of the Head Surgeon. The stench of death and decay, and the evil that she had sensed from their arrival was stronger here. Suddenly, arms were wrapping around her, holding her close and leaving her immobile. She kicked and she screamed, desperately trying to break free, to find Chris and tell him to get the _fuck_ out of here.

Someone was whispering in her ear, "Shsh…Hermione, calm down. It's me, it's just me. You're safe, I've got you."

Slowly her mind came back to reality, registering that it was Chris who had his arms around her and no one else. She turned around to face him, his arms still around her - protecting her, and buried her face in his neck, inhaling his cologne, the familiarity of him. With his hand, he lightly lifted her chin up so that she was facing him and quickly brushed his lips against hers.

"You scared me," was all she could bring herself to say.

"Let's go."

He pulled her by the hand and led her down the staircases and corridors, until they were finally exiting the building and entering into a courtyard. It was completely overgrown with vines covering almost every surface. She could see more buildings directly in front of them and figured they were their destination. As they walked, a man came out of one of the buildings and walked towards them. Hermione briefly quickened her pace to meet him, thinking he was someone in need of help, but stopped abruptly when she noticed his eyes were a blood red and that his aura was totally black. With a better look at the man, she realized, without having to be told, that this man was the Head Surgeon and that it was best if they walked away and left him be.

But the damage had already been done; he had seen them.

Quite easily, with the wave of one hand, he sent Hermione flying across the courtyard, slamming into the stone wall of the hospital. Chris screamed, "Hermione!" In fear, he attempted to run towards her to make sure she was alright, but the Head Surgeon just shook his head, waving a reprimanding finger at him before he sent Chris in the opposite direction and into another wall. And then, just as simply as he had come, he left.

After a few moments, Hermione slowly began to stir. Sitting up, she placed a hand on the back of her head and winced. _That hurt!_ she thought as she glanced around for Chris. Frantically, her eyes went back and forth, searching for him until finally she found him laying on the other side of the courtyard. Carefully, she stood herself up and ran to him, groaning in fear when she saw he was unconscious. Lightly, she poked his shoulder. But nothing happened.

"Oh, Chris, don't do this to me…" she said, shaking him some. But still he did not stir. "_Goddamnit!_" She screamed, so panicked her words were coming together. "Chris! _Christopher_ Halliwell, would you answer me! _Please_!"

Finally, his eyes fluttered open. He looked up at her and smiled, "Hermione, you're okay!"

He raised an eyebrow at her expression; her eyes were shooting daggers at him. "What?" he questioned. As a response, she slapped him.

He sat up and look at her, perplexed, "And what exactly was that for?"

"For scaring me."

He laughed, teasing her, "You _love_ me."

But before she could respond, the Head Surgeon was back. Quickly, they pulled each other up and ran away, in the direction of the other buildings.

Terrified that this might be the end of them, Hermione quickly shouted, "Okay, fine! I'll marry you!"

Chris' feet carried him as quickly as was physically possible, adrenaline aiding him with speed. Behind him, and clinging to his hand as if Death himself was on their heels, Hermione screamed, struggling to keep up with him. If they could just get away from that _damned_ spirit, everything would be fine and he could make sure he'd heard Hermione correctly. "I'll marry you!" he'd thought she had said, but he highly doubted she actually had. This was _Hermione_, after all, and she still refused to believe that they were in love; so why, then, would she agree to marry him? Finally, a door was within reach, and he practically leapt to grab it. Yanking it open, he threw both himself and Hermione into the building, and then pushed Hermione against the wall, his mouth just barely an inch from hers.

"What did you say?" he demanded, his voice little more than a whisper.

A small smile played across her lips, the slightest bit of amusement glinting in her eyes, as she answered, "I said I'll marry you."

His face transitioned from demanding to sheer exhilaration as comprehension dawned on his features; a large smile grew in place of the firm line he'd previously wore. He gave a hearty laugh, his eyes glittering with delight. And then, without giving much indication that he had planned to do so, he kissed her.

It was fierce with passion, for they both knew that this could very well be the last kiss they ever exchanged. He held her tightly, pressing her firmly against the wall. When he finally pulled away from her, her breathing had become sharp and ragged but her eyes held a certain glint in them that almost made him regret letting her go. But then the Head Surgeon came through the wall beside them.

With a wave of both his hands, the Surgeon sent Chris and Hermione flying in opposite directions again. Chris was thrown into a wall, sliding down until he finally landed on the floor. Through disheveled hair, he peered up at the demonic spirit, a glare clearly reflected in his eyes. Hermione, however, was thrown backwards and landed on something that, considering the circumstances of the room, was relatively soft.

That something - or rather, _someone_ - soft grunted underneath her, peering through the darkness to see her face, "Hello, Hermione…fancy meeting you here…"

Hermione gasped, her astonishment etched plainly on her face. Immediately, she flung her arms around the figure before her, tears already beginning to stream from her eyes. Happiness pouring into her, despite the terrible creature looming behind her, she shouted, "Sirius!"

Separating Hermione and Sirius from Chris, the demon became a massive, black spiraling mist, picking up various small items with gusts of wind and sending them flying about the room. Grabbing Sirius' hand, Hermione led him under the swirling mist of the Head Surgeon to where Chris sat crumpled against the wall. Letting go of Sirius, she put her hands on either side of Chris' face asking if he was hurt. Assuring her that he wasn't, he grabbed her hands gave each a quick kiss. She smiled at the gesture, knowing that he was doing so to calm her nerves. But even Chris couldn't stop what happened next.

The mist that had once been the corporeal figure of Head Surgeon wrapped surprisingly tangible mist-arms around Hermione's waist, flinging her backwards before Chris or Sirius could grab her and pull her back down. She screamed as she flew through the air, her arms flailing in all directions. Finally, she could feel herself falling to the floor and prepared herself for the jolt, ready for the ache she would certainly feel when she hit the ground. She was not prepared, however, for the sharp pain throbbing in her back and her abdomen. Using all her energy, she glanced down and screamed to find the splintered leg of a broken gurney sticking obtrusively from her torso, and then everything went black.

Chris watched aghast as Hermione landed on a broken gurney and was stabbed by one of the legs. "No!" he screamed, taking hold of Sirius' arm and pulling him under the spiraling demon. They were halfway to her crumpled form when the words began to echo in his mind.

"_Powers of the witches rise  
__Course unseen across the skies  
__Come to us who called you near  
__Come to us and settle here._"

A small smiled dared to play across his lips; he knew that there might still have been hope. Sprinting towards Hermione, he tightened his grip on Sirius and lunged to grab Hermione's hand just before he disappeared from the Hell he'd been thrust into and reappeared in the comforting atmosphere of the Manor's attic. Immediately, he released his grip on Sirius and hovered his hands over Hermione's wound, desperately trying to save her.

Everyone gasped at the sight before them; blood was everywhere and was continuously pouring from the gash in Hermione's torso. Without thinking, Paige and Wyatt rushed to her side, hovering their hands over her wound with Chris'. Harry, Ginny and Ron could do nothing but stare in horror and hope to Merlin that all would be well.

"What's going on?" Harry demanded, "What's happening? _What_ happened?"

Chris answered shortly, "She was stabbed."

"Is she going to be okay?"

Piper turned to Ginny, who had spoken, and set a sympathetic gaze upon the young girl, before chancing a sad glance at Hermione. Silently, she prayed that Hermione would survive; many of those in the room would heartbroken if she did not. "She's losing a lot of blood, and they're trying to heal her. She won't live if they don't."

Ginny looked terrified, "But why is it taking so long?"

"She was almost dead…" Leo said in a surprisingly kind tone. It was amazing that such a morbid and depressing statement could be declared in such a gentle and heartfelt manner. Ginny simply nodded, burying her face in Harry's shoulder, hiding her tears. For the longest time, everyone was silent, each person murmuring a silent prayer that Hermione would live.

At last, Hermione began coughing, her body heaving violently as she tried desperately to breathe. Her eyes flew open, instantly darting through the room, obviously trying to determine where she was. Grabbing her hand, Chris helped her to sit up and then - very carefully - to stand up. Harry, Ginny and Ron ran to her side, surrounding her in genuine hugs, all of them speaking their affections to her. All she could do was laugh, completely oblivious to deadly battle she had just overcome. When they finally let her go, her gaze set upon Chris - who had stepped back to allow the group some privacy - and she smiled, taking a step towards him. Graciously, he folded her in his arms, one hand snaking around and resting just below the nape of her neck, the other resting just under her chin. With his hand, he angled her face to his and slowly brought his lips down to hers. She was not aware of the fear she had wrought for everyone in the room, nor the joy she had awakened in his soul when she finally woke; he wanted to convey all of those emotions, along with his love for her, in that one simple kiss. He wanted her to know she was loved and that he would never dream of hurting her the way that she'd been hurt before.

When they pulled away, Hermione said but one simple sentence, "Now we have a wedding to plan…"


	32. A Hogwarts Handfasting

**Author's Note:** Surprise! Here's Chapter Thirty-One and the last _chapter_ of the story! The next post will be the epilogue, which I'm sure you will enjoy.

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Chapter Thirty-One:  
**"_A Hogwarts Handfasting_"

Hermione was sleeping soundly in her old bed at Hogwarts, dreaming of being complete and happy. As she slept, Ginny and Luna gave the entire Halliwell family a tour of the ancient castle. It had been many months since she and Chris had returned from the Veil and so much had happened. Harry and Sirius had a happy, albeit rocky, reunion, and Sirius - along with Ron, of course - had served as Harry's best man at his wedding; Molly had insisted that, while Harry and Ginny had already eloped, her daughter have a proper wedding ceremony at the Burrow, as had become tradition over the years. Sirius was now involved with a certain barmaid from the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade and, while the relationship had its ups and downs, they had endured through months of Sirius adjusting to life in the Wizarding World again - though, of course, he had also had some issues adjusting to commitment, but Madam Rosmerta seemed to understand. Ron was now seeing Lavender again and Hermione was doing quite well with this piece of information, a fact which many attributed to her upcoming wedding.

Hermione had returned to work a mere three days after returning from the Veil and had received many praises from the Head Unspeakable, leading to her promotion to the position of Assistant Head Unspeakable; upon the retirement or death of the Head Unspeakable, she would succeed to that position and would then have to select her own Assistant. Through much research, she had discovered the answer to the question everyone had been asking since the moment she and Chris had released each other after she had been revived: why had Chris and Hermione been able to go through the Veil, but not all the others?

It turned out that one could only go through the Veil successfully under certain circumstances. One circumstance under which one could enter the Veil was if one was dying, as Sirius had been, when they go through, in which case they would be saved and preserved until they finally decided to move on. The other and final circumstance under which you could enter the Veil was if you knew the secret, as Hermione did, and presented proof. Hermione had figured out that because she had recited the enigma for Death just before she and Chris stepped through the Veil hand-in-hand, thus proving she knew the secret, they were granted entrance. However, because magic of any kind does not work in the Veil, they were virtually stuck - unable to leave until they were summoned by the Charmed Ones. It all had added up.

Finally, Ginny, Luna and the Charmed Ones returned to find Hermione still sleeping quite peacefully in her bed. Giggling happily, Ginny ran, leaving Luna's side, and jumped unceremoniously onto Hermione's bed, shouting, "Wake up, Hermione! It's your wedding day! Wake up!"

Grudgingly, Hermione groaned and opened her eyes, slapping Ginny playfully for waking her up - no matter what day it was. She smiled glancing at her best friend, who looked quite a bit like her mother now that her daughter - Lily Claire Potter - had been born. Curious as to where her god-daughter was, Hermione asked Ginny, "Where is Lily today?"

Ginny laughed and then answered as if it should have been obvious where she was, "She's with Fleur, of course!"

"Oh, right!" Hermione said, laughing as well.

Preventing anyone from saying anything more, Hermione's mother walked into the room, carrying the wedding dress that had been hers when she married Hermione's father but that she was now giving to her daughter. It was a beautiful gown, modestly cut with long sleeves of lace. Pearls bordered the heart-shaped bust line, and Hermione could not wait until she could put it on. With a few tears in her eyes, Hermione's mother helped her daughter into her wedding gown - her something borrowed. For her hair, Hermione had decided to go for a simple approach. Her mother pulled the front part of her hair back to the crown of her head, holding it in place with a small barrette that had been given to Hermione by her grandmother when she was a child - her something old. Under her gown, Hermione slipped on comfortable white flats that had been bought a mere week before - her something new.

And then her mother shared a look with Ginny, who nudged Piper. Everyone began to giggle, and Hermione simply raised an eyebrow, silently inquiring what was so funny. Out of her bag, Paige produced a box and handed it to Ginny. Ginny smirked, and finally put Hermione out of her misery. "It's your something blue," she explained, handing Hermione the box. Eagerly she opened the box to reveal a blue garter. She flushed at the gesture, turning around and ordering everyone not to look as she slipped it on. When she turned back around, Paige clapped her hands together and announced, "All right, let's get dressed!"

With swift movements, everyone started to put their gowns on. Ginny and Luna, who were both bride's-maids, coordinated in both style and colour, as did Piper and Hermione's mother - as they were the mothers of the soon-to-be married couple. Phoebe and Paige also coordinated their dresses, but in colour only. And so, when everyone was dressed and ready, the seven of them made their way to the Entrance Hall to get in line for the ceremony. Finally, she found her father and gave him a teary hug as they found their place at the back of the line. Hermione gave him a kiss on the cheek, saying, "I love you, Daddy."

"I love you too, sweetheart," he said, choking back tears of his own.

Music began and, slowly, the line started to move forward. Hermione took a deep breathe, latching herself to her father's arm - almost afraid to let go. This was it, she was really getting married. After all that she'd been through, all the hurt and the betrayal, she was actually getting married. Finally, she entered the Great Hall and everyone stood - as was tradition - to great the bride, staring in awe at her simple beauty. Lovingly, her father guided her down to where Chris and the ghost of his great-grandmother stood. At long last, her father gave her hand - perhaps a bit reluctantly - to her fiancé and the love of her life.

"We are gathered here today to unite two souls as one," Grams - as Hermione had been instructed to call her future great-grandmother-in-law - began, smiling sweetly at the couple before continuing, "Do you, Christopher Halliwell and Hermione Granger, join us here of your own freewill to acknowledge the eternal bond shared by both of you?"

"I do."

Hermione locked eyes with Chris, her heart-rate picking up in pace as she smiled and said, "I do."

Grams began again, "You may face each other, join hands. Chris, you may recite your vows now."

Chris turned to Hermione, taking her hands in his, "Hermione, you are the most amazing person I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. You're kind, beautiful and just so stubborn that I never know what to expect from you. You make life worth living; any day without you is like a day without magic - pointless. I know we have had our troubles, but that's what makes this real. I promise to love you in this life as I have in previous lives and as I will in any future life. I promise to respect you as my wife, my lover, my friend, and my soul mate; all I am is yours."

Hermione blushed a little at the loving words he said to her, preparing herself for the words she would say to him. He squeezed her hands, assuring her that no matter what she said, he would always love her.

Grams smiled at her, gesturing with her hand, "Hermione?"

"From the first moment that I saw you, I knew there was something about you, something that drew me to you," she began a bit nervously, smiling when he squeezed her hands again. "I couldn't believe it at first, I'd been hurt so much that I thought it impossible that someone could love me genuinely. But you were amazing, you persisted through all my stubbornness with complete disregard to what I thought about our relationship…and I couldn't be anymore happier that you did. I love you with my entire heart, there is not a thing on this planet that could change that. Chris, I was born to love you and I always will."

"Here before witnesses," Grams continued, wrapping a white cord loosely around their entwined hands, "Chris and Hermione have sworn their vows to each other. With this cord, I bind them to those vows. However, this binding is not tied so that neither partner feels restricted by the other, because the only true enforcement of love is the will to love."

The cord's grip on their hands tightened but, as promised, never tied itself. Looking earnestly in Chris' eyes, Hermione smiled when they recited, "Heart to thee, body to thee. Forever, so mote it be."

With a slight chuckle, Grams said sweetly, "Christopher Halliwell, you may now kiss your bride."

And with a kiss he proclaimed his everlasting love and affection for her.

"So mote it be," she barely heard everyone recite.

There could not be a moment in which she was more happier…


	33. Her Last Mystery

**Author's Note:** Well, here we are...at the end. It seems bittersweet, almost. I really hope you have enjoyed this, even though I'm sure I didn't portray the story as you may have expected it to go. Overall, however, I think _Her Last Mystery_ has turned out pretty good, at least for only the second novel length story I've written. I'd love to see your reviews for what you think, and costructive criticism is always welcome. I've already began planning _Know Thy Enemy_ and, though I'm still in the early stages of the plot development, I think the plot is evolving quite nicely. I'm throwing in things I didn't expect to, but they seem to fit so far and I'm really excited about it. Put me on your alert list, if you're interested in that story as well. Also, check my profile and my homepage often, for every now and then I'll have updates for the story. I may even post a few short stories before we are all through.

Thanks to every one of you who read this until the end, we finally made it! Love you all!

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Epilogue:  
**"_Her Last Mystery_"

Eight months later, Hermione and Chris sat together in the living room of the Manor, pouring through books of possible names for the baby girl they were currently expecting. It had come as quite a shock when, just a month after their wedding, Hermione discovered that she was pregnant. Everyone, however, couldn't have been more delighted. By her third month, Hermione had already began to experience abnormalities similar to those that Piper experienced when she was pregnant with her children. She was virtually invincible, any cut or injury she received was healed instantly. Hermione had even developed the power to orb places and move things with her mind! She had been slightly disappointed to learn that she would most likely lose those abilities after the baby was born.

"Well, how about Penelope? For Grams?" she inquired daringly.

Chris laughed, "Are you kidding? Grams would personally hang our asses by the mantle if we did that!"

Hermione laughed, silently agreeing with him. "Patricia? I'm sure your grandmother would love that…"

"She would," Chris nodded, "but I think our daughter should have her own name, something unique. She is, after all, the first baby born to both magical worlds."

"Well, then, what should we name her?"

"It's up to you, sweetheart…"

Hermione thought for a moment, thinking back to all of the names that had stayed with her from her reading. Finally, she seemed to settle on one, "Peyton Ava Halliwell."

"Why?"

She looked at his eyes, trying determine if he approved of the name. Whether he liked the name or not, she put on a sweet smile, flipping back through the tabbed pages in her book, "Well, Peyton - in Old English - means _Village of the Warrior_, and Ava is Latin for _like a bird_. She will be strong, but free."

Chris laughed, saying, "Really? I was thinking Paisley Blair, or Prudence Leigh, or maybe," he teased, "_Permione_!"

Hermione could not help but laugh at the last name, "You are _positively impossible_ to understand!"

"Well, if I wasn't…you would have never fallen in love with me," Chris reasoned. "You do love things that make you think…"

"That is true," she said and, placing a hand on her ever-growing stomach, she thought about the past years and all the mysteries she had solved, and then she turned to her husband and smiled, bracing herself for the challenge of the years still to come - for he was the last, and only, mystery she had yet to solve.

**THE END**


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